Prior to a very tough weekend in the Asturian mountains, the Vuelta took the riders to Suances on Friday for an anticipated explosive finale. At the top of the 1,5km-last climb, Primoz Roglic eventually seized a third stage win in this Tour of Spain. Anthony Roux could play his cards today and slipped into the top 20. David Gaudu finished safely in his road captain’s wheel and is now ready for a great fight this weekend.
“I gave everything,” Anthony Roux
The outcome of the Vuelta’s stage 10 was quite uncertain on Friday. Would the breakaway fight for victory in Suances, after quite a difficult course, or would the punchers decide to make it an uphill sprint? An hour after the start, the question was still valid. They were certainly only four in the lead, after a good fight at the beginning, but the peloton started in a very apathetic way, which enabled Jonathan Lastra (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Brent Van Moer (Lotto Soudal ), Pim Ligthart (Total Direct Energie) and Alexander Molenaar (Burgos BH) to increase their gap up to … twelve minutes. It was only after more than an hour of racing that some teams started to pull. “It’s been a harder day than yesterday,” said former French champion Anthony Roux. “It was especially so because of the big gap. When they started to push in the bunch, they really did it with a high pace. Also, it was still quite twisty and there was about 2000 meters of elevation on the menu today, so it was not easy at all”. “It was a typical stage from that region,” added Thierry Bricaud. “It goes fast despite the tough terrain”.
The peloton did not spare its efforts in the chase, even if the leading quartet never seemed out of control. The gap reduced drastically along the way and was eventually closed inside the last twenty kilometres. Still, the pace remained very high due to a risky approach to the finale, where some riders actually took their chances. The last attempt, coming from Rémi Cavagna, was neutralized before the last three kilometres and the bunch got as a whole at the bottom of the final 1,500-meter climb. “The finish was very punchy, a very ‘lactic’ one,” said Anthony Roux. “On this Vuelta, I usually have the road captain role. It’s a role that I like, but it’s also complicated because I’m at a turning point in my career. Today, however, the team let me free so I could try my chances. I gave everything until the end. Either way, if you don’t finish exhausted on a finish like this one, you haven’t left everything on the road.”
“We may have to get one step ahead if the opportunity arises”, Thierry Bricaud
The Frenchman eventually took 20th at the top of the hill, just ahead of his leader David Gaudu, who enjoyed another nice support throughout the day. “We knew that the finish was difficult,” added Thierry. “The last time here, Paolo Bettini won, this time it’s Roglic, and the overall contenders joined in the fight. The guys committed to it, we tried, but it was a bit tough for us. The finish might have been suitable for Anthony but it was hard against the favourites.” The Groupama-FDJ cycling team will try to conclude this second week of La Vuelta in a good way over the very demanding weekend, which includes two top finishes in La Farrapona and at the Angliru. “These are two big stages and they will have a real impact on the general classification”, concluded Thierry. “Tomorrow, there is a series of climbs all day and it will be difficult for everyone. The finish at the Angliru on Sunday will be down to a favourites’ battle as well. We obviously hope to do some good stages with David. They suit him on paper, but we know it won’t be easy. Tomorrow, it could be a very aggressive race. We’ll need to interpret the race well and maybe get one step ahead if the opportunity arises.”
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