(Updated) PAOAY, Ilocos Norte — TUGAWIN for the win.
Ryan Tugawin of Excellent Noodles topped the MPTC Tour of Luzon stage 8 from Pagudpud to Paoay on Thursday, raising his left hand with joy while his right hand stayed on the handlebar after crossing the finish line.
Tugawin timed 3:16:58 to cover the 148.4-kilometer race from the Pagudpud Municipal Hall to San Agustin Church in Paoay, where fans beat the barricades and each cyclist finished the stage amid the blistering summer heat.
The 36-year-old Tugawin said he picked up speed in the final 500 meters of the race past the Paoay Arch and the mad dash to finish in last 200 meters of the race was the deciding factor.
In the end, Tugawin edged Ariff Danial Noor Roseidi of National Team Malaysia in a 1-2 finish.
“There were six of us in the breakaway, but we started attacking each other so the group split up. When we got away, us Filipinos — Nash Lim, Erickson, and I — talked things through," said Tugawin.
"During the climb in the last 500 meters earlier, I just followed the move. Then Erickson attacked, and I went with him together with the Malaysian rider in the last 200 meters.”
Tugawin emerged as the second Filipino cyclist to win a stage after Emmanuel Dave Montemayor ruled stage 3 of the 14-leg race.
This is also Tugawin's second top-three finish, following a runner-up placement in stage 5 which Russian Ivan Anisimov topped for his second consecutive stage win.
Another local rider, Marvin Mandac, placed third on Thursday, sharing the same time as Tugawin and Roseidi via the "3-second rule."
Meanwhile, Russian Nikita Sulchenko of the foreign club LCW UAE Cycle retained the yellow jersey after totaling 22:48:34 through eight stages in the individual general classification.
Sulchenko's Syrian teammate Yousef Ibrahiem Alrefai is 1:38 behind (22:50:12) while Mervin Corpuz of 7Eleven Roadbike Philippines is the closest local pursuer, lagging 4:15 behind (22:52:49) for third place.
Local teams continued to dominate the team general classification with Go for Gold Philippines leading the way with an aggregate of 90:22:18.
Standard Insurance Philippines is second with 90:23:35 (+1:17) while 7Eleven is third with 90:25:22 (+3:04).
Stage 9 of the Tour features a 142.6-kilometer race from Laoag to Candon on Friday.
