Delio Fernandez and Gustavo Cesar Veloso confirmed their status as the strongest riders in the Volta a Portugal when they made it a 1-2 for W52 in the queen stage to the top of Alto da Torre. After their teammates had set a fast pace throughout the entire ascent, the pair accelerated inside the final kilometre to distance the rest and it was Fernandez who took the stage win while Veloso extended his overall lead.

In the first part of the Volta a Portugal, it has been hard not to be impressed by the W52 pair of Gustavo Cesar Veloso and Delio Fernandez who have clearly proved that they are the strongest riders in the race. In fact, the former leads the race ahead of his teammate and has been in the top 3 in all but one stage.

Hence, it was no surprise that the pair turned out to be in a class of their own in the traditional queen stage which ends at the top of the brutal mountain of Alto da Torre. Not only did they prove to be stronger than the rest by making it a 1-2 for W52, their teammates delivered a splendid performance to set up their leaders.

"He deserved to win this stage," Veloso said. "Delio did an exceptional job and brought me perfectly to the finish. It was a great battle."

"In 2008 when I did my first Volta a Portugal, I was surprised by this finish," Fernandez said. "It was a great joy to win here."