The arrival at the top of Santa Luzia in Viana do Castelo at the Volta a Portugal proved to be as hard as expected. A small group decided the stage where Jóni Brandão and Alejandro Marque were again the best riders from the Efapel team, corssing the line in fourth and fifth respectively.

Unfortunately, the two team captains lost time to overall leader Gustavo Cesar Veloso who finished third.

"The seconds we lost bonuses are important but we continue to believe that our goal can be achieved at the end of the Volta a Portugal. The stage to Alto de Torre can make big differences," explained sports director Américo Silva.

Brandao is third overall while Marque is fifth.