PAGUDPUD, Ilocos Norte — There’s no rest for the weary, even for yellow jersey-bearer Nikita Shulchenko of LCW UAE Cycling Team.

The Russian rider is comfortably ahead in the individual general classification after seven stages of the Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) Tour of Luzon 2026.

Almost two minutes clear of his closest pursuer and over four minutes ahead of the best local rider, Shulchenko can take advantage of a respite on Wednesday after a grueling seven days of pedal-pushing hostilities that already passed through nine provinces.

But the 26-year-old rider sees the break as a chance to prepare and recalibrate his strategy to attack the next seven stages, which include one more individual time trial (ITT) and the dreaded mountain climb to Baguio City.

“Of course, I’ll still bike. No rest. The race will begin the following day. So, there’s no time to rest,” said Shulchenko, who ruled Stage 7 ITT on Tuesday here.

Shulchenko’s victory in the 22.9-kilometer race route that started and ended in front of the Pagudpud town hall in 30 minutes and six seconds has also increased his lead protecting the yellow jersey.

He tallied an aggregate time of 19:31:20 to remain in pole for a fifth straight day.

Shulchenko built a one minute and eight seconds gap to second-running teammate Yousef Ibrahiem Alrefai and a whopping 4:15 lead over third-running Filipino bet Mervin Corpuz of 7-Eleven Cliqq Roadbike Philippines.

He’s confident he can sustain his lead until next week in the cool mountaintop city of the country’s Summer Capital.

“Yes, I do. I can lead in all stages and finish on top,” he declared.

Other teams look to attack and overtake Shulchenko in the last half of the 14-stage Tour, hoping the mountains would take a toll on him.

But Shulchenko shared something that could send a shiver down the opposition’s spines.

“I believe I can win. The mountain climb (in the next stages) is good for me. I can protect this jersey,” he said.

“I’m a champion in Russia, winning a multi-day race. It was a 13-stage (race) and I won in the mountains (in 2024).”

And that’s bad news for the rest of the field.