Tanguilig and Reynante clocked identical times of two hours, 18 minutes and 44 seconds, just two ticks off stage winner Warren Davadilla. Their times plus those of Jay Tolentino and Arnel Espino, who both arrived in the sixth group at 2:19:51.00, gave PagcorSports a stage-winning total of 9:17:12.60 over the 98-km race from Naga City.
That effort by PagcorSports, which Pagcor chairman Ephraim Genuino praised from Manila where he monitored the race on radio, was 47 seconds faster than Gilbey’s Island Punch, the second best team in the stage. "Ang focus namin ay sa team," said Reynante adding, "saka na lang ang individual."
Team skipper Tanguilig was also as on top of the team strategy: "Team muna ang iniisip namin. Aatake lang ng individual kung may chance."
The victory kept PagcorSports in fourth place in the overall team classification but its riders reduced their deficit from the pace from 7:16.10 in stage two to 6:09.73 entering the fourth stage, a long grind from this Camarines Norte capital to Lucena in Quezon Tuesday.
Team manager Luis Carlos, who has kept a close watch on the PagcorSports riders as if they were his close kin, found the stage victory reflective of the team’s plan and that of PagcorSports in general.
It’s following the game plan almost to precision,” said Carlos, much the same way as the principles and ideals which Pagcor has put in its sports component, PagcorSports.