WILIER-VITTORIA ON FIRE AT THE CAPE EPIC: THIRD STAGE WIN!

Three and counting for Wilier-Vittoria! Simone Avondetto and Luca Braidot are on fire at the 2025 Cape Epic, claiming their third stage victory in five days. In Stage 4, an 80 km route with 1,950 meters of climbing around Paarl, the Wilier-Vittoria MTB Factory Team duo delivered another masterful performance—combining strength, strategy, and heart—to outpace their now-daily rivals in a thrilling sprint finish.

The top four teams crossed the line within seconds of each other, with the Italians once again getting the better of Swiss leaders Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo, who still hold onto the overall lead.

“It was a fast stage with lots of surges and resets," Avondetto explained. "We managed to break away a few times, but the pace kept slowing, allowing other teams to catch back up. In the end, it came down to another sprint, and we played it right once again. Winning three stages is just incredible! Now we have three really tough days ahead, and we know the fatigue could hit at any moment. But as long as our legs hold up, we’ll keep fighting like we have so far.”

“The last 10 km were flat, so no one really wanted to go all out on the climbs before that," Braidot added. "It made for a hectic sprint, but we handled it well. Overall, it was a smooth day, and we didn’t burn too much energy—which is a good thing, because the next two stages are brutal, and we’ll need everything we’ve got.”

The overall standings remain unchanged, with Avondetto and Braidot still 42 seconds behind Schurter and Colombo, while South Africans Marco Joubert and Tristan Nortje sit in third, now 9’10” back, giving the Wilier-Vittoria duo a comfortable gap.

But tomorrow brings the true turning point of the race—a brutal 98 km stage with 2,850 meters of climbing from Paarl to Lourensford Wine Estate. The organizers have already labeled it "the queen stage."