Schurter-Colombo in men and Langvad-Gómez in women win the Absa Cape Epic 2025

 The Absa Cape Epic 2025 has left us with excitement until the final kilometers of the last stage, where everything was decided. An unexpected event that added more excitement to a race finish that would decide the podium of the men's and women's races.

Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo attack and win the Absa Cape Epic 2025 in a Grand Final that is taken by the Obea Leatt Speed Company of Lukas Baum and Georg Egger

The night before the Grand Final of the Absa Cape Epic 2025 was marked by heavy rains along much of the route, forcing the organization to delay the start and shorten the course from 64 to 40 km with 1050 m of positive elevation gain.

The men's race started at a very high pace. The reduction of the route favored an explosive start, where there was no time for speculations. The Imbuko ChemChamp (Marco Joubert and Tristan Nortje), winners of the previous day, were the first to move, launching an attack that broke the group and left a gap of 40 seconds with the main peloton.

In the overall standings, attention was focused on the battle for the title. SCOTT-SRAM started with only a 32-second lead over Wilier-Vittoria, who had in this final stage their last chance to take the lead.

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At 19 kilometers from the finish, Wilier-Vittoria launched their offensive. Nino Schurter responded immediately, although Filippo Colombo showed signs of fatigue. Even so, they managed to close the gap. To the surprise of many, the SCOTT SRAM team not only recovered quickly, but counterattacked strongly, staying alone at the head of the race.

With a clear strategy of attacking as a defense, SCOTT-SRAM maintained their pace at the front. But less than 10 km from the finish, the ORBEA Leatt Speed Company pair with Lukas Baum and Georg Egger jumped from the chasing group and connected with the leaders, intending to contest the stage victory.

Schurter and Colombo took advantage of the push from Orbea and continued to extend their lead over Wilier. In the final kilometers, ORBEA Leatt Speed Company launched their final attack and took the victory in the Grand Final.

However, the big prize of the day went to Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo, who crossed the finish line seconds later and were crowned overall winners of the Absa Cape Epic 2025. The Italian pair from Wilier Vittoria would finish fifth in the stage and second in the overall standings, a result they can be proud of for history.

The Spaniards Miguel Muñoz and Luis Pérez finished the race on a high note, entering fifth place and climbing to sixth position in the General Classification.

Stage 7 Classification - Absa Cape Epic 2025 Men UCI

1. ORBEA Leatt Speed Company - Lukas Baum and Georg Egger - 1:33:22
2. SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing - Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo - 1:34:01 (+39s)
3. Outride | Toyota | Songo - Matthew Beers and Keegan Swenson - 1:34:20 (+58s)
4. MitoQ NZ Cycling Project - Craig Oliver and Ben Oliver - 1:34:37 (+1:15)
5. Klimatiza Orbea 2 - Miguel Muñoz Moreno and Luis Francisco Pérez Martínez - 1:34:55 (+1:33)
6. Wilier-Vittoria - Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto - 1:35:00 (+1:38)
7. Klimatiza Orbea - Samuele Porro and Marc Stutzmann - 1:35:04 (+1:42)
8. BH Coloma - David Valero Serrano and Tiago Ferreira - 1:35:32 (+2:10)
9. BUFF MEGAMO 2 - José Dias and Pablo Rodríguez Guede - 1:35:34 (+2:12)
10. Imbuko ChemChamp A - Marco Joubert and Tristan Nortje - 1:35:38 (+2:16)

Final General Classification - Absa Cape Epic 2025 Men UCI

1. SCOTT-SRAM MTB Racing - Nino Schurter and Filippo Colombo - 23:12:39
2. Wilier-Vittoria - Luca Braidot and Simone Avondetto - 23:14:10 (+1:31)
3. Imbuko ChemChamp A - Marco Joubert and Tristan Nortje - 23:25:37 (+12:58)
4. Klimatiza Orbea - Samuele Porro and Marc Stutzmann - 23:35:52 (+23:13)
5. ORBEA Leatt Speed Company - Lukas Baum and Georg Egger - 23:54:34 (+41:55)
6. Klimatiza Orbea 2 - Miguel Muñoz Moreno and Luis Francisco Pérez Martínez - 24:04:46 (+52:07)
7. MitoQ NZ Cycling Project - Craig Oliver and Ben Oliver - 24:07:09 (+54:30)
8. Toyota Specialized - Johan Van Zyl and Travis Stedman - 24:08:03 (+55:24)
9. Honeycomb 226ers - Marc Pritzen and Wessel Botha - 24:08:46 (+56:07)
10. Insect Science Cycling - Arno du Toit and Keagan Bontekoning - 24:10:36 (+57:57)

Annika Langvad and Sofía Gómez are crowned winners of the Absa Cape Epic 2025 in a final stage won by the Cannondale ISB Sport of Monica Calderón and Tessa Kortekaas

The women's category also suffered the delay and kilometer reduction on the last day, an adjustment that directly impacted the tactical options of several teams, especially the Cannondale ISB Sport, which had marked this stage as a key opportunity to try to reach the podium.

The stage began with Annika Langvad and Sofía Gómez Villafañe, from Toyota Specialized, as solid leaders of the general classification, with over 23 minutes of advantage over Vera Looser and Alexis Skarda from Efficient Infiniti SCB SRAM. These, in turn, also maintained a secure lead of over 16 minutes over the third-placed team. However, the third step of the podium was wide open: the TitanRacing SE Honeycomb of Bianca Haw and Hayley Preen only had a 5-minute advantage over the Cannondale ISB Sport of Monica Calderón and Tessa Kortekaas.

It was no surprise that Calderón and Kortekaas launched an early attack, determined to cut as much time as possible in the just 40 kilometers of the final stage. However, it soon became clear that the distance was too demanding to achieve the goal.

Meanwhile, Langvad and Gómez Villafañe managed their lead perfectly, riding solidly and without taking unnecessary risks. They crossed the finish line with the satisfaction of being crowned champions of the Absa Cape Epic 2025 after a practically perfect edition.

The final podium was completed by Vera Looser and Alexis Skarda in second place, while Bianca Haw and Hayley Preen resisted the final push from Cannondale and secured the third place on their own merit. A final stage without major surprises for the leaders, but full of excitement in the battle for the top positions.

Final Classification - Cape Epic 2025 Women UCI

1. Cannondale ISB Sport - Monica Calderón and Tessa Kortekaas - 1:40:11
2. Torpado Kenda FSA WMN - Katazina Sosna-Pinele and Claudia Peretti - 1:40:11 (+0s)
3. Efficient Infiniti SCB SRAM - Vera Looser and Alexis Skarda - 1:42:56 (+2:45)
4. TitanRacing SE Honeycomb - Bianca Haw and Hayley Preen - 1:42:58 (+2:47)
5. MAAP - Haley Smith and Ella Bloor - 1:43:36 (+3:25)
6. Toyota | Specialized - Annika Langvad and Sofia Gómez Villafañe - 1:43:52 (+3:41)
7. BUFF MEGAMO - Rosa Van Doorn and Janina Wust - 1:46:47 (+6:36)
8. Outsiterz D2mont Merida - Janka Keseg Stevkova and Martina Krahulcova - 1:46:48 (+6:37)
9. BULLS Swiss - Irina Lützelschwab and Alessia Nay - 1:46:49 (+6:38)
10. Songo | Kolisi Foundation - Ila Stow and Cherise Willeit - 1:48:40 (+8:29)

General Classification - Cape Epic 2025 Women UCI

1. Toyota | Specialized - Annika Langvad & Sofia Gómez Villafañe - 28:47:07
2. Efficient Infiniti SCB SRAM - Vera Looser & Alexis Skarda - 29:09:37 (+22:30)
3. TitanRacing SE Honeycomb - Bianca Haw & Hayley Preen - 29:26:09 (+39:02)
4. Cannondale ISB Sport - Monica Calderón & Tessa Kortekaas - 29:28:49 (+41:42)
5. Torpado Kenda FSA WMN - Katazina Sosna-Pinele & Claudia Peretti - 29:49:29 (+1:02:22)