LINGAYEN. — Akin to a fiesta-like atmosphere, true-blue bike enthusiasts and bystanders filled the streets of several sleepy towns of the sport’s fabled hotbed here.
They eagerly and excitedly watched in awe as the boys of summer worked doubly hard for the big prize under the scorching heat.
What they did not see coming was a stunner as Muhammad Zahin Wahhi of the Malaysia Pro Cycling Team topped the sixth leg of the MPTC Tour of Luzon Tuesday that started in Clark, Pampanga, and ended at the busy Maramba Boulevard here.
Wahhi crossed the finish line in three hours, 31 minutes, and 12 seconds, which left the appreciative crowd shell-shocked while MPT Drivehub and Umingan, Pangasinan pride Mervin Corpuz would up a strong second in another massed finish.
Rench Michael Bondoc of 7-Eleven Cliqq Roadbike Philippines wound up third to complete the big three in the 174.5-km journey to this historical attraction known for its attractive beaches and delicious bagoong.
“I pushed harder and in the last 200 meters, I sprinted. It’s my first time here in the Philippines. I think the food is good. The weather is very hot,” Wahhi, who hails from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, said.
“I think it was very tough; it’s a very hard climb. I wanted this today. So, I pushed for this. I tried to sprint,” he added.
Lurking behind 13 Filipino riders in the lead pack that promptly shifted to high gear in San Jose, Tarlac, Wahhi broke away like a bullet in the last 200 meters to emerge as the second foreign rider to win a leg in the “Great Revival” after yellow jersey holder Dae Yeong Joo (Stage 1) of Gapyeong Cycling Team in the eight-stage, 1,074.90-kilometer race presented by DuckWorld PH and Cignal.
Corpuz, a nephew of four-time Tour champion Santy Barnachea, jumped to second in the individual general classification and whittled Joos’s overall lead to 1:56 minutes from 4:30 going into Tuesday’s taxing lap.
The Standard Insurance Philippines pair of Jeremy Lizardo and Jan Paul Morales barged into the top five overall, 2:22 and 2:41 behind Joo for third and fifth, respectively.
Corpuz’s teammate Junel Carvueva stood in fourth place, 2:27 back of Joo.
The penultimate Stage 7 of the tour, backed by Pilipinas Live, Meralco, Maynilad, Metro Pacific Health, Megaworld, Landco, PLDT, Smart and endorsed by the Philippine Olympic Committee, Philippine Sports Commission, Games and Amusements Board, BCDA and MVP Sports Foundation, fires off Wednesday—a 15.2-km individual time trial here to the nearby coastal municipality of Labrador.
Now reduced to 100 cyclists from 119, these riders have already hurdled six laps and with still two to go, they are not about to slow down—literally and figuratively.
