Oranza strikes first in Luzon qualifier

SAN JOSE, Tarlac, Philippines  – Ronald Oranza flashed his superb climbing skills to best a tough field and rule Stage One of the Ronda Pilipinas 2015 Luzon qualifier, which started in the crowded street of the city and ended in the mountaintop monastery here yesterday.

Oranza, a veteran campaigner at 22, bucked tough ascents and showed his sprinting prowess too on his way to clinching top honors with a 3:32.01 clocking. He also emerged leader in both the sprint and King of the Mountain races.

“I’ve prepared hard for this. Hopefully, with my training in the national team, I’ll have a chance at winning it this year,” said Oranza, who raised his arms in triumph as he crossed the finish line before a small but appreciative crowd at the Monasterio de Tarlac, where the 30-foot Risen Christ statue is placed on the edge of a hill.

Also hogging the spotlight was Ronda inaugural champion Santy Barnachea, who at 38 showed he still got what it takes to contend, finishing fourth in 3:33.11 behind Elmer Navarro and Jan Paul Morales.

“We’ll see what happens next,” Barnachea, skipper of the Navy-Standard Insurance team that recently recruited Oranza himself and a bunch of talented young riders in John Mark Camingao, El Joshua Carino and Rudy Roque, in Filipino.

Barnachea expressed confidence he cout put up another solid effort in today’s second and final stage in Antipolo and clinch a spot in the championship round.

“I think the Antipolo stage is less difficult than this one here,” said Barnachea, who toughened up for this elims by training with the Navy team in Baguio.

Oranza, from Villasis, Pangasinan, will don the LBC red jersey symbolic of overall individual leadership in today’s 102.5km final stage. Morales, a silver medalist in the Asian Cycling Championship, will wear the Petron blue jersey for the sprint leader. Navarro, on the other hand, takes the white polka dot Mitsubishi jersey as the KOM frontrunner.

Navarro clocked 3:32.17 for second while Morales, hoping to land a spot in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, timed 3:32.41 followed by Barnachea and another Navyman, Camingao, who clocked 3:33.17.

Rounding up the top 10 were national team mainstay George Oconer Jr., Nelson Martin, Leonel Biocarles, Daniel Asto and 7-Eleven’s Mark Julius Bordeus, who is coming off a top 10 finish in the ACC.

Amerasian Jay Lampawog, a 17-year-old native of Villasis, Pangasinan like Oranza, shone the brightest in the junior race for 17-18 years old with a clocking of 2:34.00, besting Jayson Gupit (2:34.50) and Joshua Gile (2:35.20).