Stage 16: Pravia to Alto de La Cubilla. Lena , 144.4km

Fuglsang hits the high notes with solo mountain top win

Jacob Fuglsang gave Astana its second stage win with a solo effort on the 1700m Alto de La Cubilla.

Fuglsang was part of the 21-man break that managed to get away after more than 50km of hard racing. Proving a strong return to form after a disappointing early summer campaign he dropped all his companions on the Alto de la Cubilla, a climb making its Vuelta debut, to claim the solo win 22″ ahead of Tao Geoghegan Hart (Team Ineos), with teammate Luis León Sánchez taking third at 40″, just ahead of James Knox (Deceuninck – Quick Step).

Astana leader Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana Pro Team) lying fourth on GC also went on the attack attempting to close in on third placed Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) but while both Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) and Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team) lost time both Pogačar and race leader Primoz Roglic held firm.

Fuglsang explained how much the stage meant, “It feels great. To win a stage was one of my goals coming here as well as helping the team and building my shape for the last part of the season. But one thing is to have a goal, another thing is to achieve it. I’m super happy with this win. From the morning the plan was to have me and Luis [Leon Sanchez] at the front, to go in the hunt for the stage victory. With two guys in the breakaway, we could try to win the stage and if it didn’t work out, we had people up the road to help Miguel [Angel Lopez] in the final climb. And the plan worked out. It’s been my best season ever. I am super happy that I can continue to show it was not a good spring; that I had consistency to come back after a setback in the Tour de France. To win my first Grand Tour stage is really special.”

Stage 16 Results and GC

Stage 11: Saint-Palais to Urdax-Dantxarinea, 180km

Itturia basks in glory with solo stage win

Urdax-Dantxarinea, Wednesday, September 4^th 2019 – Mikel Iturria (Euskadi Basque Country – Murias) gave the local fans everything to cheer about as he took his first professional win with a brilliant ride to Urdax on stage 11 of La Vuelta 19.

Just a few kilometres away from his home, the Basque rider featured in the 14-man breakaway that animated the day. He soloed away from his companions in the last 25 kilometres and a massive effort saw him hold on to a 6” lead on the line.

The result didn’t affect the top of the GC with Primož Roglič (Team Jumbo-Visma) arriving safely in the main bunch, 18’35” behind the winner, to retain La Roja on the eve of a tricky stage to Bilbao.

Stage 11 Results and GC:

ROGLIC Soars into Race Lead with ITT win

Pau, Tuesday, September 3^rd 2019 – Primož Roglič (Team Jumbo-Visma) delivered a performance that overwhelmed his opponents in the individual time-trial from Jurançon to Pau (36.2km) to claim both the stage win and the leader’s red jersey after 10 days of racing at La Vuelta 19.

The Slovenian took the 36.2km hilly ITT in 47:05 and opened significant gaps over his rivals. Second spot went to Kiwi Patrick Bevin (CCC Team) at 25″ with Rémi Cavagna (Deceuninck – Quick Step) in third.

The only member of the top 10 on GC to put in a convincing performance was Dylan Teuns (Bahrain Merida) who placed ninth a full 1’27” down. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) moved into second on GC, but after finishng 13th on the stage trails Roglic by 1’52”. Miguel Ángel López (Astana Pro Team) retained his third spot despite finsing 14th, 2′ down however it was Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team), who was leading the race before this time-trial, that suffered the most sliding to fourth on GC, a mammoth 3’ down.

Roglič is only the second Slovenian rider to wear La Roja in La Vuelta history. The first was Janez Brajkovič who took red after Astana won the Stage 1 TTT in 2013.

Stage 10 Video Summary

Stage 10 Results:

Stage 9: Andorra la Vella  to Cortals d’Encamp, 94.4km

Young gun Pogačar rides the storm to take solo win, Quintana takes Red

Tadej Pogačar (UAE-Team Emirates) bests both mountains and weather to take a first Grand Tour stage with a solo win in Cortals d’Encamp. A second place gives Nairo Quintana the race lead for the first time since 2016.

Cortals d’Encamp, Sunday, September 1^st 2019 – The 20 year-old Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) claimed a spectacular stage win in Cortals d’Encamp after a short fast but action-packed day of racing.

Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team) finished second to claim La Roja, 6” ahead of Primož Roglič (Team Jumbo-Visma). The Colombian climber leads La Vuelta for the first time since his overall victory in 2016.

The early action on a stage comprising five categorised climbs, featured a substantial breakaway by some 30 riders. A feature rider was Team Ineos’ Tao Geoghegan Hart who attacked form the outset and then did sporadically during the stage right up to the final climb to Cortals d’Encamp. He was overhauled by the main contenders, including Marc Soler (Movistar) Ben O’Connor (TDD), Geoffroy Bouchard (ALM) and Pogačar.

The terrain was already pushing the limits of the riders but a thunderstorm on a section of gravel road brought rain and hail made the race even more brutal, leading to crashes for Lopez and Primoz Roglic (TJV).

The stage and race lead were up for grabs after overnight leader Nicolas Edet (Cofidis, Solutions Crédits) destined to lose over six minutes after being dropped at the halfway mark, and it Soler who was striking out for a stage win. An attack by Quintana saw team ambitions take over and Soler was forced to stop three kilometres from the summit pull for the Columbian and sacrifice his chance at stage glory.

Pogačar had no such conflict and reiterating the statements he had made with wins at the 2018 Tour de L’Avenir and 2019 Tour of California he struck out to win by a full 23″ over Quintana with Roglič third at 48″.

Nairo Quintana was sanguine over the chances of retaining his newly won jersey: “A very tough stage, where we always tried to ride on the attack to gain an edge on Roglic. I’m really thankful about what Marc Soler did there in the finish, as well as with all other team-mates. We always said we would be going day-by-day, seeing what Alejandro and I could do, supporting whoever is doing best, and the team has been protecting us both so far and we’ve been working together to take this jersey. There’s still a long way to go in this Vuelta. Roglic still has an advantage, considering the TT on Tuesday. We would have to make a big, big effort in the time trial not to lose the jersey, which is what will probably happen, but once we’re over it and together with the team, we will keep making efforts to take the jersey back and hopefully keep it until the end.”

Stage 9 Video Summary (Courtesy La Vuelta)

Stage 9 Results and GC

Stage 5: L’Eliana to Observatorio Astrofísico de Javalambr, 170.7km

Stage 5 Video Summary (courtesy La Vuelta)

Stage 5 results:

Stage 6: Stage 6  to Mora de Rubielos  ›  Ares del Maestrat,  198.9km

Stage 6 Video Summary (courtesy La Vuelta)

Stage 6 results:

Stage 7: Onda to  Mas de la Costa, 183.2km

Stage 7 Video Summary (courtesy La Vuelta)

Stage 7 results: