As a promising French rider during his teenage years, Antoine Huby almost lost heart waiting for a team to call him.
And then 7-Eleven Roadbike Philippines, a continental team, made the call that quashed all the doubts and helped him get back on his feet.
That is why the 25-year-old Uzel, France native is making sure to reciprocate the trust his team has shown him by claiming his second lap victory in the last three days in Stage 12 that unfolded in Agoo, La Union and culminated in Daang Kalikasan in Mangatarem, Pangasinan yesterday.
The 2018 French national junior and 2020 Under-23 champion flexed his unmatched climbing power anew in topping the 141.4-kilometer in three hours, 17 minutes and 37 seconds, or a minute and 20 seconds ahead of yellow jersey wearer Nikita Shulchenko of LCW UAE.
D’Reyna Orion Cement’s Erickson delos Santos checked in third 1:41 minutes off the pace in the lap, a relatively flat stage that featured a steep 7.4 km, Category 2 ascent to the finish.
They all tried, but failed, to catch Huby on the way up to the finish.
When Huby reached the line, he was like a diamond in the sky and celebrated by raising his left hand showing two fingers.
‘I now have two stages in my pocket,’ he said.
It was another spectacular performance for Huby that came two days after his Stage 10 brilliance wherein he conquered the brutal Bessang Pass – the second toughest climb in this 14-stage race next only to that final lap in Baguio.
It was his way of saying thank you to the Bong Sual-owned and Ric Rodriguez-coached 7-Eleven team that gave him a second chance.
‘It’s really important for me because I have not competed for a long time and I was really out of my mind,’ said Huby, who last suited up for world team Soundal Quick-Step. ‘I just want to say thank you to my team for bringing me here and my family and all who showed confidence in me.’
‘Now I just want to show everybody my place in general pro cycling,’ he added.
For his recent feat, Huby leapfrogged from third in the overall individual race to second, or just 2:30 minutes behind Shulchenko from 3:54 the day before.
The Russian managed to protect the lead after checking in second in the lap.
He currently has an aggregate time of 36:16:21.
Bumped off from No. 2 to 3 was Shulchenko’s teammate Ibrahiem Alrefai, who was now 4:29 minutes slower than the former and a 1:59 minutes off Huby.