Van Aert's decision to challenge for the stage win on the third stage came as a surprise. The Belgian had previously announced that he wanted to save himself for the weekend and stay out of trouble. However, once the breakaway was caught and the sprint teams prepared for the bunch sprint, Van Aert changed his mind.

"I decided to go for the sprint with ten kilometres to go. The run-up to the sprint was safe, and I was well-positioned with the team after the final intermediate sprint. It was easy to stay in front, and the finish was slightly uphill, which suited me. I felt my legs were good, and I thought: I'd better go for it", Van Aert said.

"It's nice to start the season with a win. The Volta ao Algarve is a prestigious race, and it's not easy to win a sprint here. It gives me a lot of confidence." According to Van Aert, the sprint went his way. "I had to take a little risk. I was quite far back in the last kilometre, but I ended up in the slipstream of the guys who came into the wind too early."

With the win, Van Aert moved up in the general classification. The Belgian is seventh, 22 seconds behind Martinez, and with the time trial still to come, anything is possible. "I haven't touched my time trial bike all winter, so I don't expect much from it. Anyway, it will be tough to beat Remco Evenepoel, but of course, I'll do everything I can to have a good time trial."