Leaders brace for tough Stage Six

LUCENA CITY , Philippines  â€“ Santy Barnachea of Navy-Standard Insurance and Mark Galedo of 7-Eleven set out as the marked men as they try to keep their 1-2 posts at resumption of the Ronda Pilipinas International 2014 with the 153km race from here to Antipolo City today.

Barnachea and Galedo, the first two winners of the annual race now on its fourth year, launched their attack in the Lucena-Lucena Stage Five Wednesday to take the top two spots with just five seconds separating the pacesetters heading to the sixth lap which features a number of climbs in Pililla, Rizal and Antipolo.

The 37-year-old Barnachea finished ninth in Stage Four to jump from No. 4 to No. 1 with a total clocking of 17:40.00 while the 27-year-old Galedo checked in with PLDT-Maynilad’s Ronald Oranza, Navy-Standard’s George Oconer, 7-Eleven’s Mark Julius Bordeos and CCN’s Yin Chih Wang at third to leap from No. 7 to No. 2 in 17:14:05.

Both riders know they will be in four a tough ride on a route that features two tough climbs in Pililla, Rizal and another in Antipolo.

“It’s always tough wearing the red jersey,” said Barnachea, who held the symbolic leader’s jersey in the early stages of last year’s edition but lost in Stage Five in Busay to reigning champion Irish Valenzuela, now with Army, in Pilipino.

“But I’ll try my best to keep it as long as I could,” said Barnachea.

Galedo, for his part, hopes to make his move in Stage Six on the very same route where he seized the solo lead during Ronda’s second edition.

“The last time we passed through this route, I finished second and I grabbed the overall lead and eventually my first Ronda title,” said Galedo, who draws inspiration from wife Grace and three-year-old daughter Paris.

“If I will have the chance, I will try to make my move (today),” he added.

Cycline-Butuan MIndanao’s Reimon Lapaza is at No. 3 with a 17:14:19 clocking, just 19 seconds behind Barnachea and 14 off Galedo.

Lapaza, 27, said the key will be the two King of the Mountain climbs in Pililla, Rizal – both Category 3 ascents.

“It will be decided in the mountains and how you get there in proper pace,” said Lapaza, a native of Butuan who has never finished higher than sixth place in a lap during his first three years in Ronda.

Oranza and 7-Eleven’s Julius Mark Bordeos are the only other riders laying less than a minute behind Barnachea with the former assembling a time of 17:14:44 and the latter 17:14:57.

Stage Six will pass through Sariaya, Candelaria and Tiaong in Quezon and San Pablo, Los Baños, Victoria, Santa Cruz, Pagsanjan, Paete, Lumban, Kalayaan, Siniloan, Famy, Santa Maria and Mabitac in Laguna and then through the mountains of Pilillia and then Tanay, Morong, Teresa before winding up in Antipolo City in Rizal.

Rey Navarro, Navy-Standard’s George Oconer and Matrix Powertag’s Daiki Yasuhara remain in the hunt with times of 17:18:01, 17:18:09, 17:18:34, 17:18:40 and 17:18:49, respectively.

In team competition, current leader 7-Eleven, which zoomed to the top after Stage Five in 51:43:32, hopes to keep or pad its lead over Navy-Standard’s 51:50:34 and Stage Four leader Cycleline-Butuan Mindanao’s 51:51:03.

This 14-stage event is presented by LBC, the largest courier and cargo company, sponsored MVP Sports Foundation, Petron, NLEX, Maynilad, PLDT and Mitsubishi, Versa 2 Way Radio and Standard Insurance and minor sponsor Air Asia Zest and C! Magazine, sanctioned by PhilCycling and backed by Shimano Cannondale bikes, the Department of Tourism and Phl National Police chief Allan Purisima.