PAGUDPUD, Ilocos Norte — Russian Nikita Shulchenko took the saying “saving the best for last” to a whole new level.

Rolling out last in the 77-rider individual time trial (ITT) run, the LCW UAE Cycling Team ace broke the heart of an expectant South Korean Kyeong Ho Min after dislodging the Seoul Cycling Team rider at the close of MPTC Tour of Luzon 2026 Stage 7 on Tuesday in front of the town hall here.

The yellow jersey-holder crossed the finish line in the short 22.9-kilometer race route in 30 minutes and six seconds, a minute and 26 seconds ahead of the Stage 6 top finisher Min, for his first stage win.

“I didn’t know (that I’ve already won) and I just did my best,” the 26-year-old Shulchenko said following his unexpected triumph.

Just looking to protect his hold of the individual general classification pole, Shulchenko’s initial plan was to maintain a good lead to keep the yellow jersey.

His effort under the sweltering noontime sun bore fruit with a bonus top podium to boot.

LCW UAE’s Yousef Ibrahiem Alrefai finished second in the ITT, 49 seconds slower than his teammate.

The team’s 1-2 finish solidified LCW UAE’s dominance in the 14-stage Tour. LCW UAE has already won four stages, with Alrefai winning Stage 1, Ivan Anisimov ruling Stages 4 and 5, and Shulchenko taking the top spot to close the first half of the Tour.

“We made it again today with a stage win. I guess we got four of the seven stages. So far, we’re doing our best. We are the best here on this Tour. And we’ll do our best in the next stages,” Alrefai declared.

“Seven done and seven to go. We did so well today. We feel better day by day, and we’ll keep fighting and we’ll show what we can do.”

Min sat on the hot seat for nearly half of the ITT run after setting off as the 34th rider and crossing his fingers that no rider would best his time.

Shulchenko rained on his parade as Min ended at dismal third.

“I’ve been aiming to win this stage all the time. As you know, I made a lone breakaway yesterday so (I’m very tired). In the morning, I felt pain in my whole body. But I gave everything, all my strength, in this stage,” said Min, who won the brutal 223.7-kilometer Stage 6 course from Tuguegarao City in Cagayan to Pagudpud town hall that included a climb approaching the Cagayan-Ilocos Norte border.

“It’s not bad (winning third). I’m still happy because I already took a stage win. There’s still one more time trial stage, so we’ll see,” he added.

Shulchenko’s first stage win also extended his clearance from his nearest pursuer in the individual general classification.

He tallied an aggregate time of 19:31:20 to keep the yellow jersey for a fifth straight day heading into Wednesday’s rest day before rolling out again for the final half of the competition the following day.

He extended his gap from second-running Alrefai by one minute and 38 seconds while Filipino bet Mervin Corpuz of 7-Eleven Cliqq Roadbike Philippines moved up to third, four minutes and 15 seconds behind.

Dave Montemayor of Go for Gold was pulled down to 11th, a full six minutes behind Shulchenko, after staying in third place over the previous four stages.

Go for Gold remained untouched at the top of the team general classification with a total time of 77:13:38.

The squad steered a minute and one second clear of Standard Insurance while 7-Eleven was in far third, two minutes and 48 seconds back.

Stage 8 on Thursday is a 148.4-km race from Pagudpud that will conclude in front of the historic San Agustin Church in Paoay.