In the second duel of the sprinters, Tim Merlier (Soudal-Quick Step) took the victory in the fourth stage of the sixth edition of the UAE Tour, a 168-kilometer flat as a billiard table, contested around Dubai.
The Belgian sprinter was again the fastest, as he did in the opening fraction of the Arab race, beating Dutchmen Arvid de Kleijn (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) and Olav Kooij (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) with Fernando Gaviria (Movistar Team) in ninth place.
As for the general classification, Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates), who has been the leader since the third stage, remained one more day in the lead of the positions of the Emirati round, where the Colombian Brandon Rivera (Movistar) retained the 14th place.
The breakaway of the day was led by Belgian Harm Vanhoucke (Lotto Dstny) and Mark Stewart (Team Corratec – Vini Fantini), but with 46 kilometers to go they were neutralized by the peloton.
Then the sprinters’ squads took over. In the closing stages, everyone tried to get their train on track for the sprint. Soudal-Quick Step was the team that came out strongest, positioning Belgian Tim Merlier very well, who took the initiative and immediately got a good lead to take a convincing win, his second of the Arab race.
The UAE Tour 2023 will continue this Friday with the fifth stage, another flat day of 182 kilometers starting in Al Aqah and finishing in Umm Al Quwain.
Stage 4 | Dubai Police Officer’s Club – Dubai Harbour (168 km)
| 1 | Tim Merlier | Soudal – Quick Step | 4:01:47 |
| 2 | Arvid de Kleijn | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | ,, |
| 3 | Olav Kooij | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | ,, |
| 4 | Stanisław Aniołkowski | Cofidis | ,, |
| 5 | Jakub Mareczko | Team Corratec – Vini Fantini | ,, |
Ranking General
| 1 | Jay Vine | UAE Team Emirates | 11:41:31 |
| 2 | Ben O’Connor | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | 0:11 |
| 3 | Brandon McNulty | UAE Team Emirates | 0:13 |
| 4 | Ilan Van Wilder | Soudal – Quick Step | 0:21 |
| 5 | Pello Bilbao | Bahrain – Victorious | 0:22 |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico