Betalú will never cease to be Betalú
3 de May de 2023Josep Betalú is known in the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco peloton as ‘the fox of the desert’. A nickname that highlights both his dominance in the race, as well as his cunning and intelligence in the riding. The KH7 rider may never have been the one who pushed the hardest or climbed the best, but his undeniable track record proves that, in this race, it’s as much about the head as it is about the legs..
He came to this edition after his worst year in the Titan World Series. Away from the leading positions and with a fall in the Moroccan race that made him abandon in the first stage. To make things worse, just three months ago he had to undergo surgery on his knee.
But in the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco it’s all about the knees, yes, but more about the head.
Thus, there was soon a leading group, in which the alternatives followed one after the other. First Fran Herrero, on the way up to the first checkpoint, then Tomi Misser, in the middle of the navigation section, and, finally, the two leaders of the general classification and Josep Betalú took the lead.
The leading trio arrived in a group and the ‘fox of the desert’ crossed the finish line first. Despite the injuries, the marathon stage, the 130 kilometres and the pain in his legs, Betalú is still Betalú and the head, in the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco, is still worth as much or more than the legs.
If the men’s GC have not moved much, the women’s GC have been practically sealed. Vera Looser has widened the gap with her immediate rivals. In fact, Marta Romeu, who until now was third in the general classification, has fallen behind.
Ariadna Ródenas took Romeu’s place on the podium, behind Looser herself and Tessa Kortekaas. The Elche native was also the winner of today’s stage. It is the first time she has won a stage in the Škoda Titan Desert Morocco since 2021.
20 minutes behind the Namibian in the GC, Ródenas has not been able to confirm the excellent sensations she showed in the Škoda Titan Desert Almería 2022 and the NEOM Titan Desert Saudi Arabia. However, she is still one of the strongest riders in the peloton and as such she has been able to prove it today, with a victory and a podium that tastes very good.
