"The secret is to wait" - Ruben Guerreiro storms through Movistar ranks with queen stage victory at Saudi Tour

Ruben Guerreiro was perhaps the most prominent of the few signings Movistar Team had this winter, but he has been quick to make his quality shown as he put on a strong climbing performance at the Saudi Tour to win the queen stage and take over the race lead.

“We knew this climb, me and my teammates had already cycled up during a training session. But we didn't know how the legs would be after the nervous days with a lot of wind," Guerreiro said in a post-race interview. "But it worked thanks to my fantastic teammates, my sports director, the soigneurs and the staff. This victory is for them and for my family.”

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Saudi Tour: Ruben Guerreiro wins queen stage and takes over race lead ahead of Formolo and Buitrago

The whole race has seen strong winds, however today not as prevalent. It was all to play for in the final climb, where Guerreiro went off with Davide Formolo and Santiago Buitrago on the tougher slopes. The trio went over the top isolated, with Formolo's teammate Felix Grossschartner attempting to close in.

“It was good that Felix returned so that both UAE Emirates riders could work. I had to keep an eye on Santiago because he is fast. Fortunately, I still had something in my legs for the sprint," he says. The final kilometers saw several attacks as the riders tried using the opportunity, but it was left for the final sprint.

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“The secret is to wait, wait, wait. It's a very nervous race. It goes very fast or very slow, because of the wind. You have to wait during the week and during this ride. It is three hours to the climb and also during the climb I was not the first, despite having good legs. I watched the UAE Emirates riders and Santiago [Buitrago]. Santiago had a good poker face, because I thought he had to release, but then he went for the bonification sprint," he explained.

Guerreiro had the legs and outsprinted Formolo to victory. With the bonifications he obtained, Guerreiro has also put on the leader's jersey ahead of the final day of racing, where despite the treacherous roads, he has good chances of maintaining it.

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“It is my first year with the team. I am very grateful to the team and Eusebio [Unzué]. I wasn't really thinking about that, I was focused on crossing the line first. It is very nice that we also have the jersey. We have a very good team, we are focused to go for it one more day," Guerreiro concluded.

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