A forced time-out can sometimes be a good thing. As long as you're allowed to return to what you did before, have the strength to come back and deal with the consequences, it can make you a better rider. Perhaps even a better man.

After 23 months away from competition - the sentence Danilo Hondo served for testing positive for the banned substance Carphedon at the 2005 Vuelta a Murcia - the 35-year-old found his racing legs on the fourth stage of the Tour de Langkawi. Attacking two or three times throughout the stage, before prepping himself when the race was destined to come back together for a bunch gallop, Hondo was riding - and feeling - like a racer reborn.

"That is the difference between me and maybe sprinters like [Alberto] Loddo; I can make a hard race, even with some climbs, and I [still] have the possibility to win after a hard race," he said.

Charge! Well in front in the final 100 meters, Danilo Hondo takes his first comeback victory in Batu Pahat.

Photo: Anthony Tan

Entering the narrow finishing straight in Batu Pahat, the Serramenti sprinter said he wasn't a bit nervous despite the chaotic finales characteristic of this race: "My head was very clear in the final. I had the feeling, and my team stayed with me to get the perfect position," said Hondo.

At 200 meters to go - a time most sprinters are thinking about launching their final kick - he already believed winning was possible. He was right. Hondo's comeback was on track.

"The motivation is not only a question for my head - the motivation is for the passion of cycling. I never stopped training; my head was always clear and I know the day would come [when I would return to racing]. When you win, everybody is happy and this is the reason why you train so hard. You give back for everybody who is behind the team - the sponsors, the staff, everybody in the family," were his philosophical words.

In comparison, the maillot jaune appeared indifferent about his third day in yellow. Mathieu Sprick's tenuous lead has narrowed even further to a single second over Drapac-Porsche's Mitchell Docker, who picked up a two-second time bonus when he placed second at Tuesday's second intermediate sprint in Melaka Raya. Granted, 13 seconds still separate those lucky 19, but the way things are going, Sprick's tenure in yellow could be coming to an end sooner than he expected.

The maillot jaune off to the press conference.

Photo: Anthony Tan

"It's not easy to go in the breakaway when you have the maillot jaune. I'm not trying to lose it, but today we didn't try and defend it the same way we did yesterday. Now it's a question of keeping some strength for the second last stage of this race," said Sprick, sounding more hopeful than confident.

Despite finishing 15th in the final kick to the line, Letua's Anuar Manan retained the points jersey after taking the competition lead the day before, the Malaysian two points in front of Aurlien Clerc and six ahead of Hondo. But it's not because he wasn't trying: "In the last kilometer I made my move to try and go to the front, but in the last 500 meters, the passage became blocked as the road got narrower and I was caught behind," explained Manan, "so it made it very difficult for me to really sprint. Regardless, I'm happy to have the green jersey for another day and tomorrow I'll try and get some more points to consolidate my lead."

Wednesday's fifth stage takes the Tour de Langkawi around the tip of Malaysia, a 139.9km route from Johor Bahru to Penawar.

Attacks, attacks, and more attacks
Spurred by the successful breakaway attempts of the previous three days, the peloton left Port Dickson in typical attacking style. However, Hondo was the only one who managed to escape for any length of time, soloing off the front after some 60km. A large group of 37 men tried in vain to chase him, caught by the peloton shortly after the feed zone (98.7km).

2008 Tour de Langkawi: Tuesday's podium.

Photo: Anthony Tan

With 105km covered, Hondo's day out came to an end, which naturally led to the sprinters' teams trying to control the situation for what they hoped would be the first bunch finish of the race. Yet again though, the likes of Tinkoff, Navigare and Serramenti couldn't get their act together to begin with, allowing a four-man move to escape that contained 2006 Langkawi champion David George, Francesco Tomei, Enrico Rossi and Simon Clarke.

With a 1:54 advantage 15km from the finish in Batu Pahat, it was touch and go, but in the end the inexorable force of the peloton put an end to the quartet's chances. It left Hondo and his Serramenti squadra enough time to gather themselves together and deliver the German his first victory since his return to racing this week, a comfortable winner over Mauro Richeze (CSF Group-Navigare) and Marco Corsini (NGC Medical-OTC).