RUDY ROQUE and three of his Philippine Navy-Standard Insurance teammates try to keep their grip of the top four spots, while Kinetix Lab-Army’s Cris Joven aims to crash the party when the LBC Ronda Pilipinas 2017 resumes today with the 227-kilometer Stage Seven from Pili, Camarines Norte, to Daet in Camarines Norte.
Just two days after ruling the 46.6-km Pili-San Jose Stage Six team time trial, Navy sets its sights on the general classification as it draws a plan to its riders’ positions by red LBC jersey wearer Roque, Ronald Lomotos, Daniel Ven Cariño and defending champion Jan Paul Morales.
Roque was overall leader since Day One and has totaled 18 hours, 12 minutes and 48 seconds to lead Lomotos (18:13:47), Cariño (18:14:43) and Morales (18:15:51). Joven is at No. 5 (18:15:51).
Rounding up the top 10 were Go for Gold’s Elmer Navarro (18:17:57), RC Cola-NCR’s Leonel Dimaano (18:18:01), Go for Gold’s Ismael Grospe Jr. (18:19:02), Army’s Lord Anthony del Rosario (18:19:44) and Go for Gold’s Jonel Carcueva (18:20:33).
Navy Coach Reinhard Gorrantes said no lead is safe in this kind of race.
“It is still too early to tell and we have no way to find out who will win this race,” said Gorrantes, himself a former Ronda campaigner before retiring a few years ago. “That is why we have to protect it well and hope we can widen the gap as the race progresses.”
“The next three stages will be important, we’ll probably get the idea who will win it after it,” he said.
For the 31-year-old Morales, who is trying to become the first back-to-back winner of the Ronda, the 40-km individual time trial (ITT) Stage 12 in Iloilo City on March 2 will be decisive.
“The ITT in Iloilo will be a little difficult because it is long. There’s a chance you could lose somewhere around four minutes there,” said Morales, who is based in Calumpang, Marikina City.
“If you want to win this year, you have to have a six-minute lead after the ITT,” he added.
Joven, 30, is also expected to make his move and challenge the powerhouse Navymen for the crown.
“I still have eight stages to catch up so I’m still optimistic about my chance,” Joven said.