Tim Wellens wins dramatic uphill sprint on Stage 4 

Rohan Dennis retained the leaders Pink Jersey as Chris Froome loses more time

It was Belgian Tim Wellens at the front for the finish of Stage 4 of the 2018 Giro d’Italia. Wellens bested Michael Woods and Enrico Battaglin at the line.

Rohan Dennis of the BMC Racing Team finished comfortably with the peloton to keep the maglia rosa on his shoulders, with Tom Dumoulin (Sunweb) sitting just 1 second back. Wellens’ win boosted his position in the General Classification to 4th, just 19 seconds off of the lead while Simon Yates moved from 6th to 3rd in the overall.

Speaking seconds after the stage finish, the stage winner, Wellens, said: “I was lucky enough to have very strong teammates. So I started with a bit of an advantage at the beginning of the climb. I didn’t have to go full-on from the bottom; I could wait for the last 200 metres. I’m very happy with winning as early as on stage 4 so the rest of the Giro will just be a bonus, whatever comes next. I’ll ride stress free now.”

The race leader, Dennis, said: “It’s been hectic with a lot of corners and a lot of public in the finale. It was a question of staying out of trouble from the last ten kilometres until the bottom of the last climb. It’s pretty common that I’ve lost the leader’s jersey after one day in other Grand Tours. To retain the Maglia Rosa today is big for me.”

Jacopo Mosca (Wilier Triestina), Quentin Jauregui (AG2R-La Mondiale), Marco Frapporti (Androni-Sidermec), Enrico Barbin (Bardiani-CSF) and Maxim Belkov (Katusha-Alpecin) came to form the day’s first breakaway group, subsequently opening up an advantage of more than three minutes over the peloton.

Back in the main field, BMC took control of the pacesetting duties in an effort to keep Dennis in the Pink Jersey.

With approximately 30 kilometers remaining, the final climbs began to take their toll on the escapees, eventually leaving just Belkov, Frapporti and Mosca out front. 

Back in the peloton, UAE Team Emirates took control of chase effort, while riders like Sergio Henao (Sky), Gianluca Brambilla (Trek-Segafredo) and Jose Goncalves (Katusha-Alpecin) were plagued by either a puncture or some form of a mechanical problem. 

With 14 kilometers to go, the peloton was successful in neutralizing the remaining trio.  

The first attack on the penultimate climb came from Edoardo Zardini (Wilier Tristina) and Valerio Conti (UAE Team Emirates). But, within just a couple of kilometers, Conti managed to shed his companion.  

With 6 kms to go there was a narrowing and a crash which delayed riders including Froome who finished 21 seconds down on Wellens.

However, with around three kilometers remaining, Conti was reeled in by the chase. 

As the main field entered the final kilometer, Esteban Chaves, Yates and Wellens succeeded in riding clear of the lead group. But, the three escapees were quickly reined by the peloton.  

During the last meters, Battaglin initiated a final attack, but the Italian rider was swiftly caught and surpassed by Wellens, who went on to seize the stage honors. 

Tomorrow's Stage 5 is short 152km flat stage before's Thursday big test on the slopes of Mount Etna on Stage 6, which could turn out to be another decisive stage in the battle for pink.

VIDEO: Stage 4 Highlights

Stage 4 Top 10

1. Tim Wellens (Lotto-Soudal) at 5:17:34″
2. Michael Woods (Education First – Drapac) s.t.
3. E. Battaglin (Lotto NL – Jumbo) s.t.
4. Simon Yates (Movistar) s.t.
5. Davide Formolo (Bora-Hansgrohe) s.t.
6. Roman Kreuziger (Mitchelton – Scott) s.t.
7. Patrick Conrad (Bora-Hansgrohe) s.t.
8. Luis-Leon Sanchez (Astana) s.t
9. Domenico Pozzovivo (Bahrain – Merida) s.t.
10. Esteban Chaves (Mitchelton – Scott) s.t.

General Classification after Stage 4

1. Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing) at 14h 23 ’08’ ‘
2. Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) at 1 ”
3. Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) at 17″
4. Tim Wellens (Lotto – Soudal) at 19 ”
5. Pello Bilbao (Astana) at 25″