João Almeida finishes runner-up at Volta Valenciana

UAE Team Emirates-XRG ride as a collective through final stage to take second place with the Portuguese and fifth overall through Brandon McNulty

News | Team – 9th February 2025

Finishing safely inside the peloton on the fifth and final stage of the 2025 Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, UAE Team Emirates-XRG placed second and fifth overall through João Almeida and Brandon McNulty, respectively. The results mark a strong week of racing for the team, which included a day in the leader’s yellow jersey on stage 4 through Almeida.

The Portuguese climber enjoyed a fine start to the season in Spain, finishing third on each of the opening three stages, handing him the lead of the race on the penultimate day. With seventh place across the line in Portell de Morella, the 26-year-old ceded the jersey to eventual stage and race winner Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious), but the Portuguese is looking in good shape ahead of races on home roads over the weeks to come.

Almeida: “I think it was a very positive result and I’m happy with this week. Our team did a good job – we fought for the win and we weren’t too far away from it. Yesterday I wasn’t feeling 100% but that’s how cycling goes – sometimes you are the hammer, sometimes you are the nail.

Overall I’m pretty happy with the first race of the season, I think second place is not bad at all. I go now to Figueira and Algarve for the next goals so I’m going there with confidence and eyes on the prize.”

Playing a supporting role for Almeida when the going got tough this past week, McNulty can be proud of his own efforts to maintain a top standing in the general classification. Also making his first appearance of the season, McNulty honoured the race as the defending champion and more than played his part as Almeida stepped into the yellow jersey following stage 3. In the climbing department, the American was ably supported by Pavel Sivakov and Felix Großschartner, both of whom tracked attacks and devoted their efforts to the team throughout the race.

Meanwhile, the engine room was cooking on gas through Ivo Oliveira, Filippo Baroncini and Julius Johansen. All three riders were pivotal to the team’s third-place finish on the opening stage, a lengthy team time trial which saw UAE Team Emirates-XRG battle against a stiff headwind to finish on the day’s podium. Riding hard each and every day, the three riders would leave everything on the road on behalf of the team’s leaders.

Just a matter of months on from the devastating floods that swept across this region in October, it was a pleasure simply to race this event and honour those who were affected by the tragedy. Ahead of stages 3 and 5, UAE Team Emirates-XRG joined the peloton in paying tribute to those who had fallen victim, and we place our thanks to those who made this race happen.

On the final stage, the peloton wore green armbands in a show of support for the Spanish Association Against Cancer. Marking the International Day of the Fight Against Cancer, the #TodosContraElCancer campaign hopes to see survival rates against cancer rise to 70% in Spain by 2030.

As for the racing itself, a six-rider breakaway sought their fortune up the road, but with a complete lack of climbing throughout the parcours, any hopes of avoiding a bunch sprint were far-fetched. Leaving the start town of Alfafar, the peloton would venture south to Favara, before returning north along the Mediterranean coast to the centre of Valencia. Crosswinds could not be discounted and in turn, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG engine room continued their important work to position the team wisely through the finale.

Not content to end the week with energy in reserve the team pushed to split the bunch in the final 30km of stage 5, as wind swept along the coastline on the narrow roads around the outskirts of Valencia, but race leader Buitrago was attentive to the moves.

Across the line beside the city marina, it was Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) who took the sprint, with the riders of UAE Team Emirates-XRG finishing in the pack to close the curtain on this year’s Volta Valenciana.

Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana Stage 5 Results

1. Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) 4:02:26

2. Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) s.t

3. Giovanni Lonardi (Team Polti VisitMalta) s.t

General classification after Stage 

1. Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) 9:14:30

2. João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +18″

3. Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) +39″

4. Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers) +42″

5. Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +53