Jonas Vingegaard secured an impressive victory in the ninth stage of the Vuelta a España. In the mountain stage to Valdezcaray, the leader of Visma | Lease a Bike surprised the competition with an early attack just over 11 kilometers from the finish. He then dropped Giulio Ciccone and expertly kept João Almeida and Tom Pidcock at bay. They lost just under half a minute to the soloing Vingegaard.
After Saturday’s sprint stage in Zaragoza, the riders faced a long 195-kilometer stage today. The route featured constant ups and downs, but the real climbers were unfazed. They were waiting for the final climb to Estación de Esquí de Valdezcaray. A 13.3-kilometer ascent averaging 5.5%, with the toughest initial section featuring gradients between 7% and 8% for several kilometers.
Alfaro) Estación de Esquí de Valdezcaray)Many breakaway hopefuls sensed their chance on the way to Valdezcaray, which meant the battle for the escape lasted long. Among others, Stefan Küng and Alec Segaert joined the contest but did not manage to break clear immediately. Later, Sander De Pestel, Michal Kwiatkowski (INEOS Grenadiers), and Archie Ryan (EF Education-EasyPost) made their move. The latter two had more success and ended up as the instigators of the day’s leading group.
Five leaders upfront
The breakaway eventually grew to five riders as Liam Slock (Lotto), Michel Hessmann (Movistar), and Kevin Vermaerke (Picnic PostNL) managed to join. They gained over two minutes on the peloton, which was led by Lidl-Trek and Bahrain Victorious, protecting GC leader Torstein Traeen. Tom Pidcock also tasked his Q36.5 teammates to help with the chase. It was a phase without much drama; a procession toward the base of the final climb.
The five leaders at work - photo: Cor Vos
There was still a heavy rain shower that battered the peloton, but that didn’t stop Lidl-Trek’s squad from reeling in the breakaway. This happened on the first meters of the final climb to Valdezcaray (13.3 km at 5.5%). Giulio Ciccone’s team set a steady pace, but the group of favorites was still large at that point. Just over 11 kilometers from the finish, the first real acceleration came. A burst initiated by… Matteo Jorgenson and Jonas Vingegaard!
Early attack by Jonas Vingegaard surprises the rest
With a strong sprint, Jorgenson provided a springboard for his leader Vingegaard. The Dane accelerated, hoping to shake off Ciccone, but the Italian held firm. The two remained ahead. In the background, João Almeida appeared surprised. He missed the move and was pushed into action by Vingegaard, after which he had to chase on his own. That was against a lonely Vingegaard, who had managed to drop Ciccone.
Ciccone fell back into the group with Almeida, where Egan Bernal, Tom Pidcock, Felix Gall, Jai Hindley, and Jorgenson were also riding. GC leader Traeen was already unable to follow. In the pouring rain, Almeida impressed by gradually closing the gap on Vingegaard. Only Pidcock and Gall could match the Portuguese rider from UAE Emirates XRG at that moment. Almeida received little assistance, which caused the pace to slow somewhat.
Vingegaard remained visible to Almeida and Pidcock, but the Danish top favorite managed to extend his lead from 7 to 20 seconds on his first chasers. The collaboration between Almeida and Pidcock was poor, leaving them about 25 seconds behind Vingegaard. The gap to red jersey Traeen had already stretched to a minute and a half with 5 kilometers remaining.
Up front, Vingegaard maintained a strong tempo. His advantage over Almeida and Pidcock grew to more than half a minute, while the Ciccone group and Traeen group were riding about two minutes back. Ultimately, Vingegaard was able to celebrate well before the finish. Pidcock won the sprint for second place, about half a minute behind. Felix Gall finished fourth in the stage behind him.
The leader’s jersey remains on the shoulders of Torstein Traeen, who crossed the line in a group just under two minutes down. He starts Tuesday’s second week of the Vuelta in the red jersey but sees Vingegaard closing in on the overall standings.
photo: Cor Vos
Vuelta a España| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 04:32:10 | |
| 2 | + 24 | |
| 3 | " | |
| 4 | + 01:02 | |
| 5 | + 01:46 | |
| 6 | " | |
| 7 | " | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | " | |
| 10 | " |
Vuelta a España| Rank | Rider | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | 33:35:46 | |
| 2 | - | + 37 | |
| 3 | - | + 01:15 | |
| 4 | - | + 01:35 | |
| 5 | - | + 02:14 | |
| 6 | - | + 02:42 | |
| 7 | - | + 02:47 | |
| 8 | - | + 02:49 | |
| 9 | - | + 02:53 | |
| 10 | - | " |
