Magnus Sheffield and Ben Turner finished in sixth and eighth place respectively on the queen stage of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana.
The fourth day of action provided a tough, 172-kilometre test, with the Grenadiers duo both present as the race arrived at the final pair of climbs.
A select peloton split on the Cumbre del Sol ascent, with both riders setting their own tempo to eventually cross the line solo. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull – Bora – Hansgrohe) used the climb as a launchpad for victory, winning the stage by 24 seconds to move into the race lead.
With one day remaining, Sheffield and Turner occupy the same GC positions as their stage placings, 1:02 and 1:56 respectively back on Evenepoel.
Turner’s performance was particularly strong across an extremely hilly parcours.
24 hours after his rousing stage victory, AJ August didn’t enjoy the same luck on Saturday, going down in a crash alongside teammate Victor Langellotti. The latter would battle on before eventually abandoning the race.