Damiano Caruso wins Circuito de Getxo

GRAZALEMA SPAIN FEBRUARY 19 Damiano Caruso of Italy Team Bahrain McLaren during the 66th Vuelta a Andaluca Ruta del Sol 2020 Stage 1 a 1738km stage from Alhaurn de la Torre to Grazalema 911m VCANDALUCIA UCIProSeries on February 19 2020 in Grazalema Spain Photo by David RamosGetty Images
Damiano Caruso (Bahrain McLaren) (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

Damiano Caruso (Bahrain McLaren) took his first individual win since 2013 as he soloed to victory at the Circuito de Getxo.

Caruso held off a chasing pack on the uphill finish, crossing the line just a few metres ahead of Giacomo Nizzolo (NTT Pro Cycling) and Eduard Prades (Movistar Team). It is just Caruso’s second individual professional win after taking a stage of the 2013 Settimana Internazionale Coppe e Bartali.

The Italian made his move from a small breakaway group, which contained his teammate Pello Bilbao, with eight kilometres remaining. The reduced peloton had Caruso, whose advantage was never more than 20 seconds, in their sights but Nizzolo’s kick was not enough to overhaul his compatriot.

How it unfolded

Under the typically changeable Basque weather, the finale of the one-day Circuito de Getxo was a frenetic one. Oier Lazkano (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) was the last man standing from the early breakaway, but with just over 30 kilometres remaining, his lead was fast diminishing.

Sensing an opportunity, multiple riders attacked off the front of the bunch in an attempt to bridge across to the lone leader, but they were all soon caught. Alessandro Fedeli (Nippo Delko One Provence) decided to take things into his own hands and pushed clear with about 24 kilometres remaining.

Behind Fedeli, several riders fell victim to the slippery roads, including Mikel Landa (Bahrain McLaren) who was at the race after a strong week at the Vuelta a Burgos. After remounting his bike, the Basque man gave the thumbs up and looked not too hurt by his encounter with the tarmac.

Despite Landa’s fall, Bahrain McLaren kept the pace up at the front of the peloton and ended Fedeli’s attack some six kilometres after it began. With one more climb to come before the finale, the scene was set for the team.

A breakaway group of five riders, containing Caruso, Bilbao, Gonzalo Serrano (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Biniam Girmay (Nippo Delko Provence) and Juan Pedro Lopez (Trek-Segafredo), formed on the 2.2km ascent. Movistar rider Nelson Oliveira missed the initial move but chased on to make it a group of six.

As the break was approaching the final 10 kilometres, Serrano, Girmay and Lopez came down hard on the descent while approaching a roundabout. Oliveira came through it by the skin of his teeth and only narrowly avoided coming down too. He made it back to the Bahrain pair but had no response when Caruso made his move with eight kilometres remaining.

The chasing peloton swallowed up each of the dropped riders but did not have enough to take back a determined Caruso, who had enough time to glance over his shoulder before celebrating as he crossed the line.

Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Damiano Caruso (Ita) Bahrain - Mclaren 4:11:09
2Giacomo Nizzolo (Ita) NTT Pro Cycling Team 0:00:01
3Eduard Prades Reverter (Spa) Movistar Team
4Jon Aberasturi Izaga (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA 0:00:03
5Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek - Segafredo
6Pello Bilbao Lopez de Armentia (Spa) Bahrain - Mclaren
7Charles Planet (Fra) Team Novo Nordisk
8Mauro Finetto (Ita) Nippo Delko Provence 0:00:07
9Eliot Lietaer (Bel) Bingoal Wb
10Miguel Eduardo Florez Lopez (Col) Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec
11Sergio Garcia Gonzalez (Spa) Kometa Xstra Cycling Team 0:00:13
12Laurens Huys (Bel) Bingoal Wb 0:00:15
13José Rojas (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:20
14Nicola Venchiarutti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec
15Kinfe Hailemichael (Eth) Nippo Delko Provence
16Gonzalo Serrano Rodriguez (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA 0:00:29
17Louis Meintjes (RSA) NTT Pro Cycling Team 0:00:38
18Baptiste Planckaert (Bel) Bingoal Wb
19Andrea Peron (Ita) Team Novo Nordisk
20Jetse Bol (Ned) Burgos - BH 0:00:41
21Juan Jose Lobato del Valle (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi
22Nelson Oliveira (Por) Movistar Team
23Jefferson Cepeda (Ecu) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA 0:00:43
24Danilo Wyss (Swi) NTT Pro Cycling Team 0:00:46
25Alessandro Bisolti (Ita) Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec 0:00:49
26Edward Theuns (Bel) Trek - Segafredo 0:00:51
27Jose Manuel Diaz Gallego (Spa) Nippo Delko Provence
28Jon Irisarri Ricon (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
29Tiago Machado (Por) Efapel
30Alejandro Ropero Molina (Spa) Kometa Xstra Cycling Team
31Cristian Camilo Muñoz Lancheros (Col) Uae Team Emirates
32Jose Manuel Gutierrez Revuelta (Spa) Gios - Kiwi Atlantico
33Diego Pablo Sevilla Lopez (Spa) Kometa Xstra Cycling Team 0:01:00
34Mads Pedersen (Den) Trek - Segafredo 0:01:07
35Andres Camilo Ardila Ordoñez (Col) Uae Team Emirates 0:01:09
36Jorge Arcas (Spa) Movistar Team 0:01:14
37Arjen Livyns (Bel) Bingoal Wb 0:01:32
38Gotzon Martin Sanz (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi 0:02:18
39Txomin Juaristi Arrieta (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi
40Ben O'Connor (Aus) NTT Pro Cycling Team 0:02:31
41Mikel Bizkarra Etxegibel (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi 0:02:37
42Paolo Totò (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega 0:02:44
43Nicolas Saenz Ballesteros (Col) Efapel
44Oscar Pelegri Ferrandis (Spa) Feirense
45Willem Jakobus Smit (RSA) Burgos - BH
46David Lozano Riba (Spa) Team Novo Nordisk
47Alessandro Fedeli (Ita) Nippo Delko Provence 0:02:46
48Mikel Aristi Gardoki (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi
49Daniel Viegas (Por) Kometa Xstra Cycling Team 0:02:51
50Marco Haller (Aut) Bahrain - Mclaren 0:03:05
51Ludovic Robeet (Bel) Bingoal Wb 0:03:19
52Ruben Fernandez (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi 0:03:33
53Gonçalo Amado (Por) Feirense 0:05:07
54Federico Burchio (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega 0:05:09
55Jesus Alfonso Arozamena Carretero (Spa) Feirense
56Péter Kusztor (Hun) Team Novo Nordisk
57Sam Brand (GBr) Team Novo Nordisk 0:05:42
58Matteo Rotondi (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega
59Jefferson Cepeda (Ecu) Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec 0:05:53
60Francisco Peñuela Sandoval (Ven) Gios - Kiwi Atlantico 0:06:33
61Fábio Oliveira (Por) Feirense
62Rafael Reis (Por) Feirense
63Sebastian Mora Vedri (Spa) Movistar Team 0:09:00
64Juan Felipe Osorio Arboleda (Col) Burgos - BH
65Raul Colombo (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega
66Sergio Roman Martin Galan (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
67Antonio Puppio (Ita) Kometa Xstra Cycling Team
68Rafael Silva (Por) Efapel
69Luís Mendonça (Por) Efapel
70Iñigo Elosegui Momeñe (Spa) Movistar Team 0:09:04
71Mikel Landa Meana (Spa) Bahrain - Mclaren
72Delio Fernandez Cruz (Spa) Nippo Delko Provence
73Oier Lazkano Lopez (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
74Xavier Cañellas Sanchez (Spa) Caja Rural - Seguros RGA
75Albert Torres Barcelo (Spa) Movistar Team 0:09:06
76Eros Capecchi (Ita) Bahrain - Mclaren
77Juan Sebastian Molano Benavides (Col) Uae Team Emirates
78Benjamin Dyball (Aus) NTT Pro Cycling Team
79Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Bahrain - Mclaren
80Jesus Ezquerra Muela (Spa) Burgos - BH 0:09:16
81Juan Pedro Lopez Perez (Spa) Trek - Segafredo 0:09:19
82Maximilian Richard Walscheid (Ger) NTT Pro Cycling Team 0:11:05
83Nicholas Dlamini (RSA) NTT Pro Cycling Team
84Gerard Armillas Pubill (Spa) Efapel
85Francesco Zandri (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega 0:11:24
86António Ferreira (Por) Feirense 0:11:42
87Rui Oliveira (Por) Uae Team Emirates
88Antonio Santoro (Ita) Work Service - Dinatek - Vega
89Luca Pacioni (Ita) Androni Giocattoli - Sidermec 0:11:49
90Angel Madrazo Ruiz (Spa) Burgos - BH 0:12:03
91Franklín Chacón (Ven) Gios - Kiwi Atlantico
92Miguel Angel Fernandez Ruiz (Spa) Gios - Kiwi Atlantico
93Ivo Oliveira (Por) Uae Team Emirates
94Emils Liepins (Lat) Trek - Segafredo
95Julen Irizar Laskurain (Spa) Euskaltel - Euskadi
96Ivan Cobo Cayon (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
97Afonso Eulálio (Por) Feirense 0:13:14
98Brian Kamstra (Ned) Team Novo Nordisk 0:13:16
99Fernando Lopes Gonzalez (Spa) Gios - Kiwi Atlantico

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