Mareczko takes final day of Tour de San Luis, Dayer Quintana wins first stage race

A surprise winner emerged in Sunday’s finale of the 2016 Tour de San Luis, with Italian Jakub Mareczko, who usually rides for Southeast-Venezuela, taking the flowers when it looked like the Italian team was working for Sky’s Elia Viviani. Nairo Quintana’s little brother Dayer, who was runner-up in Saturday’s queen stage, finished safely in the pack and is the champion of the 10th edition, with Nairo third.

Winner of a stage of the Tour of Austria in 2014, Dayer grabs his first career stage race victory.

The early action before five 17-km circuits centred around the final categorized climb of the 2016 Tour de San Luis. There, race runner-up Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentina/Fortuneo-Vital Concept) pinched the King of the Mountains title from Roman Villalobos of Costa Rica.

Then it was time for the day’s breakaway. A quintet scuttled away and stayed clear and intact until Emanuel Guevara (Argentina/San Luis Somos Todos) suffered a mechanical on the penultimate lap. The sprinters’ team rode with intent and made the capture with 8-km remaining.

The Italian national team mobbed the front to deliver Elia Viviani, but Mareczko either missed the morning briefing or Viviani couldn’t come past his lead-out man. Regardless, it was a photo finish.

#TourdeSanLuis En un final de 'photo-finish' impresionante, @jakubmareczko (Italia) se impone a Elia Viviani pic.twitter.com/qgKjfhWMNT

— CiclismoInternacinal (@CiclismoInter) January 24, 2016

Dayer is on form to help Alejandro Valverde in the Giro d’Italia, although he may be kept for his brother’s purposes in the Tour de France.

2016 Tour de San Luis Stage 7
1) Jakub Mareczko (Italy/Italy) 2:36:51
2) Elia Viviani (Italy/Italy) s.t.
3) Jason Lowndes (Australia/Drapac) s.t.

2016 Tour de San Luis Final GC
1) Dayer Quintana (Colombia/Movistar) 22:52:12
2) Eduardo Sepulveda (Argentina/Fortuneo-Vital Concept) +0:20
3) Nairo Quintana (Colombia/Movistar) 0:35