photo credits @ La Vuelta
The day after Joao Almeida conquered the Angliru, it was Marc Soler’s turn to shine for UAE Team Emirates-XRG on La Farrapona. The Spanish attacker delivered a masterclass performance to claim a summit he had previously settled for second on behind David Gaudu in 2020.
In toady’s stage 14, he joined the breakaway again and dropped his rivals with 16 km to go. Soler is the fourth different stage winner for the Emirati outfit in this edition, bringing their tally to seven stage wins – the best score this century in a single edition of the Spanish Grand Tour, surpassing Quick-Step Floors’ six victories in 2017.
Meanwhile, Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) rounded out the day’s podium, finishing 39 seconds behind and confirming they are the two main contenders for La Roja with eight stages to go.
Race Highlights
On the day after the Angliru, another emblematic Asturias summit awaited the riders, with a grueling finish at La Farrapona, after overcoming mighty ascents such as the Alto Tenebreo and the Puertu de San Llaurienzu, packing 3,805m of elevation.
Jonas Rickaert (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was the first attacker of the day, but he was reeled in at km 12 after a flurry of counter-attacks. After some 20 km of battling, a group of 22 attackers eventually emerged at the front, with the likes of Soler, Victor Campenaerts (Visma-Lease a Bike), Carlos Verona (Lidl-Trek), Jefferson Cepeda (Movistar), James Shaw (EF Education-EasyPost) and Kevin Vermaerke (Picnic PostNL).
Campenaerts was later dropped from the breakaway due to a mechanical problem, but he managed to make it back to the front at km 57, with Gijs Leemreize (Picnic PostNL) by his side. In the meantime, Xabier Mikel Azparren (Q36.5) had also bridged the gap to the front of the race, making it a total of 24 riders to lead the way.
In the meantime, Vingegaard’s Visma-Lease a Bike drove the bunch, while the gap gradually increased to 5 minutes, and later 6 minutes after the first ascent of the day, the Alto del Tenebreo. Almeida’s UAE Team Emirates-XRG reacted, with Ivo Oliveira, Domen Novak and Juan Ayuso setting the pace on the climb up the Puertu de San Llaurenziu.
At the front, Shaw crested the summit first, with ten more attackers in his wake, as the gap fell to 3’20’’.
The attackers got back together just before the final climb to La Farrapona, with Soler immediately putting the hammer down. Johannes Staune-Mittet (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) tried to follow but the Spaniard attacker went solo with 16 km to go.
Meanwhile, UAE Team Emirates-XRG continued to drive the GC group, with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe upping the ante during the last 4 kilometers.
Despite an attack from Jai Hindley’s in the final kilometer, the Spanish rider was two far ahead, sailing to his 4th Vuelta stage win 39 seconds ahead of Vingegaard and Almeida.
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