Chapter 464: A Stumbling Block to the Seventh Vuelta a España Title Appears

In the Red Bull Bora Team Car, the moment Aldag learned that Huang Chong had successfully led Lipowitz across the finish line, he and his team immediately threw their arms up in celebration.

The fact that the on-the-fly tactics he devised in the final stage were executed so flawlessly was undoubtedly thanks to Huang Chong’s incredibly cooperative nature.

Without Huang Chong leading the pace the entire time, it would have been utterly impossible for Lipowitz to shake the other teams’ commanders who were shadowing him in the main group.

Only Huang Chong possessed such an incredible ability to control the race. During the final climb, he could act as a lead-out for Lipowitz to save his energy while simultaneously maintaining enough power to continuously create a gap with the other teams’ commanders.

Most importantly, in the final 200 meters, Huang Chong, confident in his own strength, successfully chased down Dunbar who had made an early breakaway, easily defending his position to claim his sixth stage victory.

As for the anaerobic burst in the final 150 meters, a rider of Dunbar’s caliber was simply no match for him.

“Well done, Huang!”

“Thank you for your tactical sacrifice. You helped Lipowitz cross the line in second, which massively increases our team’s chances of getting at least two riders into the top ten of the general classification for this Vuelta a España!”

“Without a doubt, this was a magnificent victory. We’re all so proud of you!”

Once the Bora Team Car returned to the finish line, Aldag got out to celebrate with Huang Chong, embracing him and lavishing him with praise.

Huang Chong was long accustomed to such praise. He knew it was just a part of the everyday politeness in Western culture, so he simply smiled, nodded, and replied casually:

“I gave it my all in this stage. Now it all comes down to the final ITT tomorrow.

After today, Lipowitz should move up two spots in the general classification.

But whether he can secure that final sixth place will depend on his own performance in the time trial!”

“Of course. It’s already incredible that you helped him overcome a one-minute deficit to the Trek Commander, Skjelmose, on this stage.

I’ll leave the rest of the work to him.

But regardless, I truly thank you for your extra effort. After all, acting as a lead-out for a lieutenant isn’t technically part of your job description.”

Huang Chong had a decent understanding of Western work culture by now. He knew that when it came to their jobs, these guys all tended to stick to their own responsibilities and nothing more.

But every system has its pros and cons, and he had his own philosophy for getting by. He smiled, shook his head, and replied graciously:

“You’re too kind, Director!

We’re a team. While we usually have a clear division of labor with everyone fulfilling their specific role…

…but here at the Tour of Spain, the domestiques have already worked for me for nineteen stages.

And since I’ve built up such a commanding lead, it’s only right for me to make a sacrifice for the good of the team.”

Aldag was filled with admiration for Huang Chong upon hearing his words.

This young man from the great nation in the East had proven through his actions that he was cut from a different cloth than most World Tour commanders.

The ultimate reason for this, however, was that Huang Chong’s personal ability had put him in a league completely separate from his competitors.

In the world of competitive sports, only those with unparalleled strength have the luxury of being gracious and humble.

…

“Holy crap, Huang Chong is an absolute beast!!”

“Just as I predicted, Huang Chong took the Queen Stage of this year’s Vuelta a España! He’s also tied Pogačar’s record for stage wins in a single Grand Tour.”

“The only question left is, can he win again in the final ITT?”

“Replying to the post above: Definitely! The final ITT stage won’t affect Huang Chong’s overall ranking anymore, but winning it is still incredibly important for him.”

“Exactly! It’s not just about seeing if he can wear the leader’s jersey from the very first stage all the way to the end, it’s also about whether he can surpass Pogačar’s record for wins in a single Grand Tour!

A seventh stage win in one Grand Tour—who wouldn’t want that?

If he pulls it off, he’ll have single-handedly won a third of the stages in this Grand Tour. That would equal the record of seven stage wins set by the great Eddy Merckx himself during the 1970 Tour de France!”

“The craziest part is, Huang Chong even took it easy on stages 13 and 16 of this Vuelta, both of which were summit finishes. If he’d gone all out, there’s no question he would’ve won those too—”

After Stage 20 of the Vuelta a España concluded, cycling fans back home were going absolutely crazy.

Fans across the country were already speculating on how Huang Chong would perform in Stage 21 tomorrow.

At the same time, fans everywhere were online, digging up all the championship records of the legendary god of cycling, Merckx, looking for benchmarks for Huang Chong to surpass.

Of course, Huang Chong had no idea what his fanatical supporters back home were thinking. If he did, he wouldn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

His performance this year had been astonishing, a meteoric rise, even.

But the main reason for it was that he hadn’t had to face Pogačar.

‘I lost both races where we competed. I’m not even the number one rider in the world yet, so comparing me directly to the ultimate king of the sport, Merckx, is just a shameless attempt to ride his coattails. It’s completely meaningless.’