Key points:
· Participants take mountain stage by the horns
· Insatiable Josep Betalú claims first win
· Titan gets taste of Far West
Tabernas, 03/11/2020. Stage 2 of the Titan Desert has taken the riders to the Camp, one of the main hubs of the event, where all competitors live together in the same conditions and there is no difference between a five-time winner of the Tour de France and amateurs on the adventure of a lifetime.
After 65 kilometres and an altitude gain of 1,800 metres cleared in 2 hours and 31 minutes, the king of the desert, the winner of the last four editions, stamped his authority on the race by taking a stage win and the overall lead. Betalú, the sheriff of this movie-like camp located at the Mini Hollywood oasis, lived up to expectations as the favourite to win the race and claim his fifth Oscar for Best Actor.
World championship competitor Sergio Mantecón took the fight to the KH7-Logifrio rider, but an ill-timed puncture near the end cost the Cantabrian mountain biker all chances of a stage win and relegated him to the chasing group that crossed the line a minute and twelve seconds back. The nine men in this group were yesterday’s stage winner Jesús del Nero, Guillem Muñoz, Oriol Colomé, Pau Marzà, Sergio Mantecón, Julen Zubero, Haimar Zubeldia and David Arroyo.
Meanwhile, it is hard to look past Clàudia Galicia as the future winner of the women’s classification, as the Megamo rider continues to prove she is in a league of her own stage after stage. After putting five minutes into Ramona Gabriel in the opening stage, this time she finished almost six minutes ahead of Silvia Roura (KH7-Logifrio) and close to ten minutes ahead of Gabriel (Lapierre).
Clàudia is so fast right now that she finished the stage in under three hours. She crossed the finish line in 2 h 57′59″, alongside legendary pro rider Sylvain Chavanel, who has won several Tour de France stages and holds the record for most starts in the Grande Boucle —18.
JOSEP BETALÚ: “The Titan is one stage shorter this year, so we have to tackle the stages judiciously. For me, it was important to open up a gap from the beginning.
Yesterday, at the team meeting, I told everyone I wanted a fast race and asked them to shake the tree and see what happened. I knew there was a climb and I was eager to see how it would play out. If you’re not having a good day, there’s nowhere to hide here. Today was about raw power, not strategy.
Iván Díaz put in a monster final turn and I kept going and broke away with Sergio Mantecón. We worked well together. I have a great deal of respect for him. He’s a brilliant rider who’s finished in the top 10 in the Worlds, and that makes him a force to be reckoned with. I saw he was feeling well today, so I kept a close eye on him, but then he suffered a puncture. I looked back to see whether it was worth it to wait but I saw the group closing in, so I realised I had to go full gas for 15 km to the finish and couldn’t afford to wait for him. I went flat out until the finish and managed to open up a nice gap, but there’s still a lot of racing to come in this Titan, and we need to stay alert because anything can happen.”
CLÀUDIA GALICIA: “This race has always had a special place in my heart since I first got into mountain biking and took part in my first Titan, back in 2013. This time round, I managed to fit it into my schedule and, although it’s the late season, I’m ecstatic to be here. I’m very pleased with how the stage went. It’s true that starting from the front boxes means getting overtaken by faster riders and having to ride alone for many kilometres, but I always end up finding a few lads riding at my pace.
I’m way ahead in the general classification, but you can never relax in the Titan. A mechanical or a bad day can cost you loads of time here. We just have to take it one stage at a time and enjoy this race, which the organiser is keeping safe at all times.”
The short (65 km) but brutal (1,768 m altitude gain) second stage of the 2020 Titan Desert delivered as promised. After a sluggish start in the sandy opening 10 kilometres, followed by an observation round, a group of about fifteen Elite riders powered away from the peloton before navigating the narrow thoroughfares of the charming village of Níjar. These cowboys on two wheels dug deep and gritted their teeth to tackle a winding 15 km ascent with an altitude gain of 900 m.
Sheriff Betalú
After crowning the climb, again with a super-inspired Tomás Misser at the front, the leading group containing the main favourites kept pushing hard on the highly technical descent to Turillas. At this juncture, Josep Betalú (KH7-LOGIFRIO 1), upped the pace to take matters into his own hands and make amends for his failure to win the opening stage. The winner of the last four editions turned on the afterburners to claim stage 2 solo in a time of 2 h 21′18″. Yesterday’s winner Jesús del Nero (GOBIK FACTORY TEAM) led the pursuers home today, while Guillem Muñoz (BULTZAKI TBELLES BMC IGUNA BY KALAS) took the bottom step of the podium. Meanwhile, Clàudia Galicia extended her dominance in the women’s category to win her second stage in as many days in a time of 2 h 57′59″.
Call of the Far West
The 382 mountain bikers in the race will be sleeping on a movie set this evening, surrounded by a saloon, a sheriff’s office and a stable. The Mini Hollywood oasis, located right in the middle of nowhere, is a Far West-themed stopover worthy of Hollywood. While conviviality and generosity have always been part and parcel of the Titan Desert, there is no doubt that this unprecedented visit to the scene of great classics of the seventh art will add an even more cultural touch to the “Titan spirit”.
Josep Betalú: “The Titan Desert is one stage shorter this year, so we have to tackle the stages judiciously. Yesterday, at the team meeting, I told everyone I wanted a fast race. I was eager to see how it would play out, but I knew who was going strong. Today was about raw power, not strategy.”
Clàudia Galicia: “I’m very happy to win this stage. I had to ride alone for many kilometres, but I always end up finding a few lads riding at my pace. I’m way ahead in the general classification, but you can never relax in the Titan.”
