photo credits @La Vuelta
Already a stage winner in Portugal and in Andalusia, Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease Bike) powered to his third victory in the Vuelta a España today, with a dominant performance between Ponteareas and Baiona.
The Belgian rider went on the move over the summits of Galicia to eventually get the better of Quentin Pacher (Groupama-FDJ), his last breakaway companion. Meanwhile, Ben O’Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) made it through the traps of the day to retain the Red Jersey
Race Highlights
The peloton tackled 4 categorized climbs and more than 3,047m of elevation between Ponteareas and Baiona today.
Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates) set off at the drop of the flag. However, on the slopes of the Alto de Fonfria, Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) unleashed his raw power, with van Aert and William Junior Lecerf (T-Rex Quick-Step) following his move.
From there, the trio led by 14’’ at the summit. The gap hardly increased as attacks kept on flying from the peloton, with Juri Hollmann (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Pacher joining the front group.
The leaders increased their gap to 6’15’’ while en route to a demanding sequence of climbing, the Alto de Vilachan, Alto de Mabia and Alto de Mougas.
The breakaway riders continued to stick together until van Aert attacked just before the intermediate sprint in Barroca. Pacher followed his move, while Soler, Lecerf and Hollmann were left to chase on the way to the last summit.
Pacher attacked inside the last 2 kilometers but Van Aert gave him no room, later distancing his rival to claim the stage honors, while Soler led home Lecerf and Juri Hollmann to fill out the top five.
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