2013 Vuelta a Espana: The Final Report

I almost wasn’t going to write this, I am feeling a little Vuelta fatigue, having posted 27 articles about the race already. However having said I would write one it made sense to do so.

The General Classification

The winner of the 2013 Vuelta a Espana was Chris Horner (RadioShack-Leopard) and there is no denying that he was the strongest climber in the race. Horner was always prominent when the racing went uphill, he won stage 3, fulfilling his pre-race ambition of taking the a stage win and the Red Jersey early in the race. He won again on the extremely difficult Alto de Hazallanas, and was the highest finishing GC contender on both the Pena Cabarga and on L’Angliru. Horners’ excellent performances on those four stages proved crucial in the 2013 Vuelta a Espana, as did finished ahead of Vincenzo Nibali on stage 19.

I have watched cycling for many years, so like many other observers the level of Chris Horners’ performances raised a lot of doubts and skepticism in my mind. Scott O’Raw of the Eurosport Cycling Podcast articulated those concerns in this post http://velocast.cc/the-problem-with-chris-horner. There must be a certain amount of incredulity when a rider who is just shy of his 42nd birthday can become a Grand Tour winner for the first time, doing so after a lengthy injury layoff and after only one week of racing prior to the Vuelta adds fuel to the fire. That build up race, the Tour of Utah, saw Horner produce an excellent ride to win the penultimate stage and take the race lead, it also saw him lose it the next day when he was unable to reproduce the effort from the day before. A perfectly normal physiological response to a long injury layoff. I expected him to be stronger by the start of the Vuelta, he was certainly coming into the race with less fatigue than any of his rivals. However I really didn’t think he could sustain his performance for three weeks, not without more build up racing. I am not going to get into power data, climb times or anything else that has been speculated upon online, I’m not qualified to get into that properly and many others have already done so. Instead I go by what my eyes see and that has lead to the above concerns. Yet that is all they are, concerns, doubts, skepticism, they prove nothing and a rider should not be condemned based on those things alone. I do find it hard to be convinced by what I have seen over the last three weeks, but I have been wrong about many things in my life, so simply trusting my own judgement in matters such as this, isn’t enough. Chris Horners’ performances on the road certainly merited victory and justifiable skepticism aside, he should be able to enjoy that victory unless someone can prove it is unjust. It’s not as though Horners’ rivals produced their best in this race either, all came into the Vuelta having already completed another Grand Tour, none was in their ideal condition. Had they then the result might have been different, Horner could have finished 4th or 5th and would have been lauded for a great effort.

Giro d’Italia winner, and former Vuelta winner, Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) admitted his recovery from the Giro was less than ideal. Travel and sponsorship commitments meant he was out of shape when he began his program for the second half of the season. It’s also true that the Vuelta itself was not his target, though he did want to win it, rather he was aiming at the World Championship road race and the Giro di Lombaria which take place in the next 19 days. Even so, finishing 2nd, having already won the Giro makes 2013 a year to remember for Nibali. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) finished 3rd and 4th respectively, each came into the race after a hard fought Tour de France and it showed, as they simply were not at their best. Valverde won the Green Jersey despite not winning a stage, the number of mountain finishes combined with the lack of a dominant sprint team made sure that one of the GC riders would win it. Given Valverdes’ surprising speed at the finish for a climber, he was always a likely contender. Rodriguez won the 19th stage, his 8th stage win in total in the Vuelta a Espana, but he couldn’t find his best form.

Nicholas Roche (Saxo-Tinkoff) also completed the Tour de France, but unlike Valverde and Rodriguez he definitely rode within himself in France, performing as a domestique, often working in the earlier parts of the stage before knocking off the effort. He came into the Vuelta in great shape, slimmer and full of confidence and it showed when he won the 2nd stage and later claimed the race lead for a day. It was a bravura performance from the Irishman, a race full of attacking intent and his reward was his highest ever finish in a Grand Tour. Domenico Pozzovivo (AG2R) finished 6th after being caught out by the wind on stage 17, he climbed superbly throughout and produced a surprisingly good ITT performance to keep himself firmly in contention. Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) finished 7th overall, a strong ride from the young Frenchman and a good response to his problems at the Tour de France, like Roche he rode aggressively, even daring to attack on a descent, if he can really sort that out then his future remains very bright. Finally I want to mention the unfortunate Ivan Basso (Cannondale), 2013 has not been kind to the veteran Italian, he was going superbly in this race before the changing weather conditions caught him out, had they not then he would have been a factor in the GC competition.

 

The stage winners

If there was a key to picking the stage winners in this Vuelta, it was to expect the unexpected. In a race with so many uphill finishes, it was always likely that the GC riders would feature prominantly amongst the stage winners. I have already mentioned that Horner won two stages, and Rodriguez and Roche won one apiece. Of the other GC contenders Dani Moreno (Katusha) twice, and Leopold Konig (NetApp-Endura) also won uphill finishes. Moreno has had a strong season, winning La Fleche Wallonne, riding strongly in suport of Purito in the Tour and again here at the Vuelta. He started this race in terrific form before, putting aside personal ambitions to once again work superbly for Rodriguez. Konig had a superb race for NetApp-Endura, riding aggressively in the opening week before winning on the Alto de Penas Blancas, finally finishing 9th overall. It could have been even better had he not suffered briefly from illness and losing some time as a result, but it was a great Grand Tour debut from the Czech rider, we can expect to see much more of him in the future.

Mountain finishes are hard to call in general, you have to factor in how big the break was, who was in the break, what gap did the break have, when did the GC race behind light up etc. In this race the breaks were eventually given a lot of leeway, seven of the final nine stages were won by a member of the break. Two of those were Alexandre Geniez (FDJ) and Vasil Kiryienka (Sky Procycling), both riders were part of large breakaway groups which splintered as the stages progressed. Each also rode away from their companions with considerable distance still to race, holding off the chasing riders and sealing terrific victories. Geniez earned his win with a brilliant and insane descent, distancing the more sensible Andre Cardoso (Caja Rural), Kiryienka took his by riding away from the break and settling himself into a metronomic rhythm all the way the the finish. Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Leopard) took the ITT on stage 11, finishing ahead of Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) and potentially gaining a small psychological advantage ahead of a potential clash in the World ITT Championship next week.

There were few sprint stages in this race, and most of those came with some sort of trap which made it harder to bring about the bunch sprint. Given the parcours, few teams brought orthodox sprinters, opting instead for more opportunistic fast men. Those teams were also less committed to the sprints, bringing more versatile squads instead, sacrificing the power and strength necessary to chase down the breaks and drive the peloton to the line. The end result was an almost complete absence of full-on bunch sprints, and a lack of control as the peloton approached the line. A perfect example came on stage 6, when Michael Morkov (Saxo-Tinkoff) took the win from a reduced and tired field of sprinters. Things were under control with 16km to go, Tony Martin was dangling 20 seconds ahead of the peloton and the sprint teams were happy, then Martin raised the pace and the chase was on. Over the next 15km it was all the sprint teams could do to keep Martin within 50m, using up all their support riders in the process. When the sprint came, it came from far out and with the strong men to the fore, rather than the fast ones, Morkov showed great instincts to follow Cancellara then spring out for the win. He doesn’t rank highly among the fastest finishers in the world, but when there is a lack of control sometimes being smart is the path to victory. Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) and Philippe Gilbert (BMC) also trumped the sprinters, taking superb wins on days when the sprinters were expected to shine. Stybar earned his win after he and Gilbert had jumped clear of the peloton, the final 5km of the race were very technical and the sprint teams foolishly let the two escapees reach that point with a small advantage. From there the Stybar and Gilbert rode too well to be caught, with Sybar being the fastest at the finish, taking his first Grand Tour win and adding to his burgeoning reputation. Gilbert won later in the race, the sprint was on an uphill drag and he showed he was hitting his best form by storming past Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Procycling) for the win, his first while wearing the Rainbow Jersey. Bauke Mollema (Belkin) rescued his teams Vuelta with a highly unlikely win on the stage into Burgos. The peloton had been much reduced by the winds on the road to Burgos, however they reached the finish with a number of fast finishers, Farrar, Richeze, Bole and Boasson Hagen were there. Yet none of those fast riders took up the race in the final 1km, allowing Mollema to steal away for the win. He is fast on the line for a climber, but definitely outmatched in that company, another victory for tactical nous and the spirit of attack.

There were of course other stage winners but they fit better in the next category.

 

Young riders come to the fore

One of my race previews featured the young riders to watch out for in this race. It came with the proviso that many were here more for experience, riders for the future rather than the here and now, some of course did diddly squat, but others shone. Warren Barguil (Argos-Shimano) and Kenny Elissonde (FDJ) are gifted young French climbers who showed their potential when winning stages in this Vuelta. Barguil won two stages, finished in the top 10 on two other uphill finishesand generally won over the cycling public with his attacking style, a magnificent performance from a 21 year old riding his first ever Grand Tour. Elissonde, 22, only had the one stand out day in the Vuelta, it just happened to come on the most difficult and iconic of all, winning on L’Angliru is a landmark victory for any climber, never mind one riding his first Grand Tour. Daniele Ratto (Cannondale) has been making a name for himself as an opportunistic sprinter, one for the uphill sprints, and the tough run ins. A good climber for a fast man but not a likely candidate to win a mountain top finish like he did here, taking victory from a break, atop the Coll de la Gallina and in awful weather. It was a terrific victory.

I felt silly talking about the sprints earlier and leaving out the most impressive sprinter in the field, Michael Matthews (Orica GreenEDGE). The 22 year old won the two bunch sprints that featured in the race, and did so with some ease, clearly the fastest sprinter in this race. A year ago I would have labelled Matthews more of an opportunistic sprinter than a true fast man, but he has impressed me as a sprinter in the last six weeks, showing an impressive burst of speed as well as the strength to hold it. 2014 will be a big year for him as he should get the chance to compete against the elite sprinters at some point and we can see just how competitive he can be. He certainly had the backing of his team here, Orica-GreenEDGE worked hard whenever there was the possibility of a sprint finish, Christian Meier in particular was busy on the front of the peloton.

 

Wild card teams impress

Al three wild card teams did themselves proud in this Vuelta. NetApp-Endura must take the largest plaudits, Leopold Konig starred, and when he struggled Jose Medes was there to nurse him through to the end of the stage. Bartosz Huzarski and Jose Mendes were aggressive in the mountains and several times in the race the team as a whole came to the fore on the front of the peloton. Nicolas Edet was the star for Cofidis, winning the KoM jersey through aggressively getting into breaks. Caja Rural lacked the tangible success of the other two, and will have been disappointed that David Arroyo couldn’t finish in the top 10, but they certainly got themselves noticed. No team was more active in the breaks than Caja Rural, Javier Aramendia, Andre Cardoso, Amets Txurruka and Antonio Piedra were particularly aggressive.

 

The disappointments

Perhaps the biggest disappointment for many cycling fans is that this was the last Vuelta for the Euskaltel-Euskadi team. Thankfully the team is in the process of being bought replaced by another Spanish team, formed by Fernando Alonso, but they won’t be Basque and there will be no more carrots in the peloton. It’s a pity that they didn’t manage a more memorable final Vuelta, no stage wins and their best finisher was Samuel Sanchez who was 8th overall. They were active though, particularly in the mountains where Igor Anton and Egoi Martinez were particularly strong.

Lampre-Merida failed to win a stage or achieve anything of note in the GC, however between Maximiliano Richeze, Diego Ulissi and Michele Scarponi they had six podium finishes. It comes after a similarly winless Tour de France, though they certainly went closer to landing a big result in this race. Similarly Garmin-Sharp failed to achieve any memorable results, they were seriously hampered when GC contender and potential stage winner, Dan Martin, crashed out of the race. However Tyler Farrar did finish the race and must be disappointed with his performances, coming 2nd on the final stage was respectable, but he had more speed than almost all the other sprinters in this race. With the way the team is morphing into a more GC oriented team, failing to win here won’t help him make future Grand Tour squads.

Neither Lotto Belisol nor Vacansoleil-DCM managed to achieve anything of note, though both teams saw their chances of doing so devastated by withdrawals. Lotto Belisol had only four finishers, their chances of success virtually disappearing when Bart de Clercq crashed out, prior to that De Clercq had been climbing with the favorites and looked good. Their best result came through Adam Hansen when he was one of the final survivors from the break, finishing 3rd on the climb of Pena Cabarga. Vacansoleil had even worse luck, with just three riders finishing the race. Juan Antonio Flecha was easily their most impressive performer, seemingly trying to roll back the years with attacks on almost every stage.

Vasil Kiryienka saved the race for Sky Procycling, their two Colombian climbers Sergio Henao and Rigoberto Uran, had been expected to feature as GC riders but just didn’t deliver. I am a big fan of both but they weren’t at their best.

 

Overall I think this was an enjoyable Vuelta, the GC race went right down to the last big stage, and it was a dramatic stage at that. This current formula they seem to use definitely creates some interesting finishes, with most of the action designed to happen towards the end of the race, when television pictures are live. If I have a gripe it’s the lack of variety, there were too many uphill finishes, particularly too many mountain finishes. I’m not arguing for more sprint stages, though another obvious sprint finish would likely have brought a different field of riders to the race. Instead I’d like more imagine finishes ,a descent to the line after a tough climb, a small uphill finish coming after a much bigger climb, with a nice descent in between. A substantial hill 25km from the finish, not enough to make it a GC only selection but favoring the opportunistic stage winners, use the winds more, basically just add more variety to the race. However that’s meant as constructive criticism rather than having a moan, I really enjoyed watching this Vuelta.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Brief Notes From Stage Twenty One

I hope to post a final report on the Vuelta in the next couple of days, but given I’ve posted about every other stage it seemed only fair to say something about the final one.

 

Michael Matthews doubles up

It’s always weird watching the final stage in a Grand Tour. Pretty much everything is decided prior to the start, so we are left with a ceremonial procession where riders can smile for the camera, the Classification leaders show off their jerseys, and generally nothing happens until half way through the stage. When the peloton approached the first lap of the circuit in Madrid it was led initially by RadioShack-Leopard, but they gave way to allow Euskaltel-Euskadi a moment on the front, for the last time in the Vuelta. When the racing did begin it was the ubiquitous Javier Aramendia (Caja Rural) who launched the attack, followed eventually by Alessandro Vanotti (Astana). As far as action goes, that was it until the peloton caught those riders in the final lap. Then the team with an interest in the sprint, came to the front and kept the pace high. It did of course come to a bunch sprint, led out by Reinhardt Janse Van Rensburg (Argos-Shimano) but finished off with ease by Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEDGE). Matthews was clearly the class sprinter of the field, it will be interesting to see how he develops over the next couple of seasons.

 

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Twenty

The break succeeds again and another young French climber comes to the fore

As expected half the peloton wanted to go in the break today, so there were a couple of failed attempts before a 32 man group finally managed to go clear. The break contained two Astana riders, Paolo Tiralongo and Jakob Fuglsang, both potential winners on a mountain stage like this, but in this case they were up the road so that they would be able to help Vincenzo Nibali later in the race. Giant breaks don’t generally function smoothly, so it was no surprise to see some riders attack on the Alto Tenebredo, however most of the break had reformed before they reached the Alto del Cordal. On the Cordal Paolo Tiralongo and Kenny Elissonde (FDJ) went clear, though for a while Elissonde struggled to stay with the veteran Italian. They played an entertaining, and potentially dangerous game of overtaking each other on the descent, but worked well together when they reach L’Angliru. At that point their lead was just under 5 minutes and while the two worked well together on the first half of the climb, that lead steadily dropped After they hit the steep second half of the climb, Tiralongo dropped back to be available for Nibali, leaving Elissonde alone in front. Elissonde has long been viewed as a hugely talented climber with a great future, today he started to fulfill that potential. From the point where Tiralongo dropped back, Elissonde just put his head down and kept climbing, staying out in front right through to the finish. Winning atop L’Angliru is a great achievement for any rider, to do so at such a young age is fantastic., a tremendous day for Kenny Elissonde.

 

Chris Horner seals the race, but Nibali goes down fighting

Vincenzo Nibali went on the offensive as soon as the small group of favorites reached the steep second half of the climb. Chris Horner, Joaquim Rodriguez and Alejandro Valverde worked together to try and get back to Nibali, they finally managed after about 1km but Valverde was dropped in the process. Horner, then Nibali gave little attacks, while Rodriguez just tried to stay with them, then things calmed down as Tiralongo, then Fuglsang came back, and Valverde having overcome his rough spell, bridged over to them. With 3km to go Nibali attacked again, dropping all bar Horner, even Horner was struggling to stay in touch for a while, before rejoining Nibali. Inside the final 2km Horner made the decisive move, Nibali tried but could not follow, he could only watch the Red Jersey disappear into the mists ahead. Horner surged towards the finish line, coming 2nd, 26 seconds behind Elissonde, but crucially 28 seconds ahead of Nibali and Valverde. Horner carries a 37 second lead into the final stage and only a crash, extreme winds or a horribly timed mechanical problem can prevent his victory now. It was an incredibly dramatic finale, the iconic climb witnessed a dog fight for the Red Jersey, all shrouded in the mist. Vincenzo Nibali fought like the champion he is today, when some riders might have ceded defeat, or rode cautiously in the hope they could attack in the final 1km and get a tiny gap and the time bonus to take the lead. Nibali choose to go out swinging and deserves a huge chapeau for making this a great finale to the Vuelta a Espana. Horner can relax and celebrate the victory, he will enjoy tomorrow’s ceremonial stage, if not the questions that will inevitably follow it. There is certainly no denying that the strongest climber in this race has won.

 

Looking ahead to the final stage

Stage 21: Leganes – Madrid
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The usual ceremonial finish, something for the Jersey winners to enjoy as they ride towards the finish in Madrid, and not a day with any GC implications. It’s an obvious sprint stage but several riders will look to go in the break, the fact that most of the sprint teams have dramatically weakened teams gives them a fighting chance of succeeding. Attacks close to the finish also seem very likely, and could succeed for the same reason. As for the finish itself, there are some tight corners in the final 5km, with the toughest being the u-turn with about 1km to go, from there it’s a relatively straight run to the line. For Lampre-Merida, with Maximiliano Richeze and Garmin-Sharp, with Tyler Farrar, this stage will determine whether they have had a successful race, both will be desperate for it to end in a sprint.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Nineteen

No mercy for the break today

A 20 man break went away almost from the start today, however they were never given any leeway by the peloton, with the break remaining at 3:00 or less throughout the day. The peloton was led by Katusha and Omega Pharma-Quick Step, each of whom had their own plans for the stage win. Midway through the stage, Georg Preidler (Argos-Shimano) and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Procycling) rode clear of the other 18 riders in the break. When the peloton reeled in the chase group behind the leaders, it prompted more attacks, with a group including Jose Herrada (Movistar), Gorka Verdugo (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Jose Mendes (NetApp-Endura), Serge Pauwels and Pieter Serry (both Omega Pharma-Quick Step). This was clearly the move that OPQS had worked for, trying to launch Serge Pauwels to chase the win. The last flurry from the break came as they approached the final climb, Jose Mendes went clear and started the climb with an advantage of just under a minute over the peloton. It would have been wonderful to see Mendes hold on to take the win, he had worked so hard for Leopold Konig on stage 10, helping his ill team leader limit his losses. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be as various teams set a very high pace on the climb behind, Katusha, FDJ then finally Saxo-Tinkoff. They caught Mendes inside the final 2km.

 

Purito bares his teeth

The pace had really ratcheted up when Saxo-Tinkoff came to the front, Rafal Majka did a tremendous turn on the front, in an effort to spring Nicholas Roche clear to win the stage and take back some more time. Majka put everyone under pressure, most notably Thibaut Pinot who was dropped. Roche attacked when they caught Mendes, he gained a little ground and was followed by Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) then Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha). Purito wasn’t messing about, he went right past Roche and Scarponi and took an appreciable lead under the 1km to go banner, staying ahead to take the win and gain some time over his rivals. He gained 24 seconds on Chris Horner (RadioShack-Leopard) which probably won’t be enough time to enable Purito to challenge for the Red Jersey tomorrow. However it was still a strong performance from Rodriguez, and a fitting reward for the work his team had put in throughout the stage. Behind Purito there were gaps aplenty, surprisingly Vinenzo Nibali (Astana) was struggling again, losing 6 seconds and the Red Jersey to Chris Horner, the new race leader.

 

Looking ahead to stage twenty and the dreaded Angliru

Stage 20: Aviles – Alto de L’Angliru
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With punchy climbs throughout the day, the parcours suits a break. However winning atop L’Angliru has enough of a cult status that the GC riders are unlikely to cede the win lightly. If a break is to succeed it will need to reach the Alto del Cordal with a huge lead. The 27km from the foot of the Alto del Cordal to the top of the Alto de L’Angliru, will be the toughest section of the entire race. The Alto del Cordal is 5.3km, 9.6% with slightly steeper ramps, it’s a short but tough climb. The riders won’t have much time to recover from it before they start on L’Angliru, which comes immediately after the descent from the Cordal. L’Angliru is 12.2km at 10.2%, but it can be divided in half, with the first 6km having a 7% gradient which ends with a shallower section. The final 6.2km of the climb comes in at 13.3%, starts and ends with ramps of 21%, and with the steepest section reaching 23.5%. A ridiculously tough finish to the GC contest in this race. The stage itself finishes after a gentle 500m descent at the top of the climb but the damage will be done by then. Given the way he is climbing, it’s hard to see Horner losing enough time to lose the Red Jersey tomorrow, but anything is possible on such a brutal climb.

Alto de L’Angliru
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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Eighteen

Vasil Kiryienka takes a terrific win

Yet again we have a winner who was in the original break and managed to survive out in front. The break was a strong one today, 15 riders forced their way clear of the peloton, though Movistar and Cofidis tried to put up a fight, since they missed the move. Cofidis will have been particularly annoyed that Nicolas Edet missed out, since Amets Txurruka was able to take some free KoM points, though he is still 15 points behind Edet. When the break reached the penultimate climb, the Alto del Caracol, Vasil Kiryienka simply kicked clear, Simon Clarke and Adam Hansen initially tried to follow but Kiryienka just rode away from them. The remainder of the break split into groups at this point, as those who were capable of attempting to chase down Kiryienka did so. Kiryienka simply went into his automaton mode, setting a high tempo on the climb, descending at speed, dealing with the little bumps then launching into the final climb with his usual metronomic rhythm. He looked incredibly comfortable for much of the final climb, but by the time he reached the final 1km he was clearly in pain, operating on willpower alone, determined to see himself over the line. It was the latest in the string of sensational victories that have featured in this Vuelta and the 3rd Grand Tour stage win for the Belarusian. It was a huge result for the Sky Procycling team, saving their Vuelta and providing a timely answer to the criticisms of their former DS, Sean Yates.

Chris Horner inches closer to the lead

Movistar, Katusha and RadioShack-Leopard all started this stage knowing they needed to gain time on their rivals, and all of them had an eye on the time bonuses available for the top 3 finishers on the stage. So it was surprising when those three teams effectively gave up on closing down the break, despite having them within a manageable distance. On Monday Vincenzo Nibali was struggling to keep up with his rivals on the final climb. I thought it may have been an aftereffect of the two previous Pyrenean stages, tough climbs and hideous weather can certainly sap anyone’s strength. If so then the rest day and improved weather should have help Nibali get back on track, and for a while it looked like it had. On the final climb Dani Moreno led out an attack for Joaquim Rodriguez, Chris Horner and Vincenzo Nibali were able to respond, while Alejandro Valverde could not. Horner then attacked, Nibali went with him, as did Rodriguez initially, though he was soon distanced. However when Horner and Nibali reached the steepest ramps Nibali looked to hit the wall, suddenly struggling to move forward at all. From that point on Horner charged for the line as best he could, Purito and Valverde recovered behind and both overtook Nibali before the finish. Vincenzo Nibali obviously dug deep, limiting the time lost to just 25 seconds, leaving Horner 3 seconds behind him with two uphill finishes remaining. Horner and the RadioShack team might rue the decision to let the break stay ahead, he is clearly the strongest climber in the race right now and would have won the stage, taking the Red Jersey in the process. While I’m sure he is confident he can take more time on the stages ahead, form can be a fickle thing, they may regret this day. Still this way the Red Jersey is still in Astana’s hands, keeping the race controlling responsibilities in their hands as well, easing the worklod for a RadioShack team that no longer has Fabian Cancellara. It was the steep sections that caught Nibali out today and on Saturday L’Angliru is steeper and longer than the Pena Cabarga, Nibali needs to find better form before then or it will be all over.

Looking ahead to stage nineteen

Stage 19: San Vicente de la Barquera – Oviedo
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A transition day of sorts, sandwiched between a tough finish on Stage 18 to a horrendous one on stage 20. It’s easy to believe the main contenders might hope for a cessation of hostilities ahead of L’Angliru, but unless a break is far enough ahead then the time bonuses should ensure someone attacks on the final climb. The stage finishes with the Alto del Naranco, at 6.8km and 5.8%, it’s an iconic climb but not a hugely difficult one. The toughest section comes with 3km to go and if one of the big favorites does want to attack then that is the place to do so, but I wouldn’t expect to see Vincenzo Nibali put under the same pressure he was today. For a number of teams, tomorrow represents their final realistic chance to go for a stage win, Sunday is a sprint and L’Angliru will be exceedingly hard to win on, so competition for places in the break will be intense tomorrow. I don’t mean to single out Lampre-Merida, but Diego Ulissi would be a terrific candidate for the stage win, if the break goes the distance. Alex Howes of Garmin-Sharp should be another interested party, as Should Carlos Betancur of AG2R, if he has managed to race his way into any kind of form.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Seventeen

Saxo-Tinkoff master the wind once again

On stage 13 of the Tour de France, the Saxo-Tinkoff team took advantage of the crosswinds to distance some of the other favorites, allowing Alberto Contador to gain 1:09 on his rivals. It was a brilliant attack and made for thrilling viewing. Fast forward two months, and Saxo-Tinkoff take advantage of the crosswinds to distance some of the other favorites, allowing Nicholas Roche to gain 1:31 on his nearest rivals. It was another excellent attack. Domenico Pozzovivo (AG2R) and Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) were the best placed riders who lost out and now find themselves lagging well behind Roche. The move came with a little more than 30km to the finish, when the race was on the high plateau leading to Burgos, teams knew it was coming and still some riders were caught out.

Lampre-Merida blow it

The days break consisted of only two riders, Adam Hansen (Lotto Belisol) and Javier Aramendia (Caja Rural) and knowing their chances of success were nonexistent they set an easy pace for the first half of the race. Astana had no interest in chasing them down so it fell to whatever teams were interested in bringing the race to the expected bunch sprint, today that was Lampre-Merida. They received some help from Orica GreenEDGE, but the bulk of the work throughout the stage was done by Lampre-Merida. I thought it might be them, they need a stage win  and in Maximiliano Richeze have one of the most in-form fast men in the race. Moreover many of the other teams with sprinters are down to 4 or 5 riders, and simply lack the manpower to commit to a long chase. When the peloton split Orica GreenEDGE lost out, with their sprinters dropped by the peloton, yet Lampre made the move with Richeze and several team mates, it looked good. They had a free ride into the final 10km, where there was a short and steep hill which was the launch pad for an attack by Lampre’s Diego Ulissi. He gained a handful of seconds and stayed ahead for a few kms, once caught other riders launched attacks and Lampre were a team that helped shut those attacks down, keeping Richeze to the front at the same time. In the final 2.5km no team wanted to take it up, Lampre, Garmin, Saxo-Tinkoff and Sky all found themselves on the front for brief spells, but they always wanted someone else to take over. It continued into the final 1km and Bauke Mollema (Belkin) used this indecisiveness to launch a solo attack, nobody followed or gave chase. The sprinters were too busy looking at each other, waiting for someone else to give chase so that they could follow them, that they forgot to catch Mollema, letting him roll over the line unopposed and leaving themselves red faced. It was an audacious victory for Mollema, he is a fast finisher for a climber but he was definitely outmatched in that company, they knew that as well and clearly dismissed his threat. It was great for the 4-man Belkin team, having lost their stage winner, Theo Bos, before the race began, and having seen their GC challenge fall apart, they badly need a stage win to save their Vuelta. I singled out Lampre-Merida for criticism, because they worked all day just to waste the opportunity at the end of the stage. It would be disappointing but understandable if Richeze had lost out to Farrar or Boasson Hagen in a sprint, but to waste the chance while waiting for someone else to make the first move, that just it wasn’t good enough. Of course the same is true for Sky and Garmin-Sharp, both teams need that stage win as well, and both had their fastest finishers well placed to go for the win. However neither of them spent the day sitting on the front of the peloton just to watch someone else ride away to victory.

Looking ahead to stage eighteen

Stage 18: Burgos – Pena Cabarga
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The stage starts on the same high plateau that stage seventeen finished upon, winds might once again be strong but I can’t imagine any team will force the issue there, not with an entire stage to follow. The parcours gets progressively harder with each climb being harder than the last, before it climaxes with the Pena Cabarga. First is the Alto de Bocos, 3km and 6.6%, then the Alto Estacas de Trueba, 10.9km at 3.2%, then things start to get more serious with 65km to go when they reach the Puerto de la Braguia. It’s 6.1km at 6.3% and probably too far out for any attack to be launched, but it will certainly help thin out the peloton. Next is the Alto del Caracol, 10.6km at 5.6%, a climb that has caused real problems for riders in the past. The stage finishes with the Pena Cabarga, 5.9km at 9.2% and ramps much steeper than that, it’s a very tough climb and if any rider is struggling they could lose significant chunks of time. With 1km to go the slope reaches 20% before easing towards the finish line. It will be tough and it could be explosive, provided the GC riders go for it. The two most recent winners on the climb were Chris Froome and Joaquim Rodriguez, it’s a stage where the elite climbers can come to the fore.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Sixteen

Warren Barguil does it again, and this time it’s better

It was a fast and frenetic stage, lots of riders tried to get into the break, we had splits in the peloton and groups all over the road. However by the time the race was reaching the bottom of the final climb things had settled down. There was a lead group of of a little under 20 riders, a small chase group and a Euskaltel-Euskadi led peloton about 3:00 behind. A number of the breakaway riders were perfectly happy to sit in the group without working, so several riders decided that attacking was the smart move. After all there is no point dragging others to the finish, just so they can use their extra energy to win. Juan Manuel Garate (Belkin), Warren Barguil (Argos-Shimano) and Mikael Cherel (AG3R) went clear, but the move was ultimately closed down after work by Rigoberto Uran (Sky Procycling) and Dominik Nerz (BMC). On stage thirteen Barguil had been in a small group that was closed down by the rest of the break, as soon as the group was caught he jumped clear on his own and rode to victory. Well he repeated the trick here, as soon as the breakaway was all back together Warren Barguil attacked again, aided by inaction behind he was able to open up a 30 second gap on the lower slopes of the climb. Eventually Uran, Nerz and Bartosz Huzarski (NetApp-Endura) realized that their only chance of wining came from catching Barguil so they started to work, even so with 5km to go the gap was 38 seconds. With 1km to go Uran finally caught Barguil, who took the opportunity to sit on the Sky rider’s wheel, Uran wasn’t overly keen on this arrangement and tried to slow and force Barguil to pass him. However the sight of Nerz and Huzarski catching them spurred Uran into launching his sprint. Barguil was able to come out from behind him to pip Uran on the line, though he won by the smallest of margins. Barguil was forced to dig very deep to win that stage, it was a terrific performance, and beating Uran on a mountain finish is definitely a nice feather in his cap.

 

There is still life in the GC contest after all

A day after commenting that Nibali seemed to be comfortable and riding within himself, he goes and struggles on the final climb, losing a little time on all his rivals and looking vulnerable for the stages ahead. It was surprising, he has been slowly building form for the weeks ahead, but anyone can have a bad day. The conditions from the previous two stages were certainly enough to sap the energy from anyone, but with the improved weather and a rest day tomorrow, Nibali will hope to be back on form. If he isn’t then the GC race really does open up, it looks like the climb of L’Angliru on Saturday is going to be pivotal, which is the way it should be.

 

Looking ahead to Wednesday

Stage 17: Calahorra – Burgos
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On paper this looks like a sprint stage, true there are two classified climbs and a fair amount of the route is bumpy but the run in suits the sprinters teams. The question is, do we have any sprinters teams left? There are still sprinters of course but many of their teams have been drastically reduced in manpower. Michael Matthews and Leigh Howard (Orica GreenEDGE – 5 left), Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp – 5), Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma-Quick Step – 4), Maximiliano Richeze (Lampre-Merida – 8), Grega Bole (Vacansoleil-DCM – 4), Reinhardt Janse Van Rensburg and Nikias Arndt (Argos-Shimano – 8), Tosh Van Der Sande (Lotto Belisol – 4), Robert Wagner and David Tanner (Belkin – 4), Edvald Boasson Hagen ( Sky Procycling – 8), Adrian Petit (Cofidis – 8). Garmin, OPQS, Orica, Lotto, Belkin and Vacansoleil simply do not have the manpower to close down a break and then work for the sprint at the end. Argos Shimano have been willing to work in this race but with two wins already they won’t want to carry the rest, Cofidis will be happy if Edet can keep the KoM Jersey and probably wouldn’t work for a sprint. Neither Lampre or Sky have been prepared to overly commit to work for a sprint finish, but both teams have a contender and a need for a stage win to get anything out of this race. If those two don’t take it up then I don’t see the break being controlled on this stage.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Fifteen

The break succeeds again

It was a fast start with many riders trying to get into the break, when it eventually succeeded there were 28 riders. Before they reached the second climb the break had split into two groups, with 6 riders leading the race and the rest in a chase group. The six were Andre Cardoso (Caja Rural), Warren Barguil (Argos-Shimano), Alexandre Geniez (FDJ), Mikael Cherel (AG2R), Francis De Greef (Lotto Belisol) and Nicolas Edet (Cofidis). Getting into the break really paid off for Edet, he now leads the KoM competition. On the Col du Port Bales the break split again as Cardoso and Geniez were climbing better than the others, unfortunately for Cardoso he lost contact with Geniez on the descent. Geniez was descending like a maniac and from that point on no one came close to catching him, he rode brilliantly to seal with win, the best result of his career so far and making up for suffering from illness early in the Tour de France.

 

Nicholas Roche has a gamble

On the Col du Port Bales, Chris Anker Sorensen (Saxo-Tinkoff) led a much reduced peloton of maybe 32 riders. After they had completed about 2/3rds of the climb Sorensen pulled over and Nicholas Roche launched an attack, gaining about 20 seconds by the time he reached the top of the climb. Once there he was met by team mate Oliver Zaugg who had been in the early break, Zaugg set a great pace down the descent, pulling their advantage out to more than 1 minute. On the Col de Peyresourde, Zaugg was replaced by Rafal Majka who had been in the early break and dropped back to help Roche. When Majka was done Roche launched another attack, powering himself to 3rd on the stage (Michele Scarponi was 2nd) and gaining a total of 17 seconds on his GC rivals. It was a lot of effort for a small time gain as Roche remains 6th overall, however it was worth it as he is now only 6 seconds behind Domenico Pozzovivo (AG2R), and there are more opportunities to gain time in the days to come. Behind Roche there was a lot of skirmishing but little in the way of real attacks, though Thibaut Pinot (FDJ) was particularly animated. Many of the leading riders gave little kicks, trying to test their opponents and see who was feeling strong, ultimately they gave that up as the top five riders on the GC rode the last few kms together. It’s pure speculation but it gave the impression that Valverde and Rodriguez are suffering from having completed the Tour de France and are just holding on, trying to avoid losing more time. Vincenzo Nibali looks stronger than the rest but I am not sure he has actually tried to give it 100% on an attack, he is simply doing enough to win. Any effort he conserves now will be to his benefit when he tries to win the World Championships and it would be ideal if he could win the Vuelta without giving it everything.

 

Looking ahead to stage sixteen

Stage 16: Graus – Sallent de Gállego
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The third stage in the Pyrenees but it isn’t a monster like the previous two. It’s shorter at 146.8km, the weather is expected to be better and the climbs are less testing. Not that it’s an easy day, there are three categorized climbs and the rest of the stage is virtually one long uphill drag which will sap the legs. The stage finishes on the Aramon Formigal, it’s an easier final climb than the riders faced in the previous two stages but with a steep section in the final 3km, and coming at the end of an easier stage, we may see more attacking riding from the GC contenders.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Fourteen

Daniele Ratto steals the limelight

From the start of the race a group of five riders went clear, Luis Leon Sanchez (Belkin), Philippe Gilbert (BMC), Graeme Brown (Belkin), Steve Chainel (AG2R) and Daniele Ratto (Cannondale). On the Port de Envalira they split up with Sanchez, Gilbert and Ratto climbing too well for the others, at that point their had lead reached it’s maximum value of 12:35. Gilbert led the trio over the top of the climb but they split up on the descent, Sanchez crashed then later withdrew from the race with Hypothermia. Ratto and Gilbert raced on ahead but Ratto soon distanced Gilbert, leading the race over the next two climbs and all the way to the top of the final climb. It was a magnificent performance from the 23 year old, a real landmark victory. It was also superbly timed for the Cannondale team who lost their leader today.

 

The weather wreaks havoc on the race

Having enjoyed a permanently dry and hot race to date, the transformation to dreadful conditions today took an awful toll on the peloton. It rained throughout the day, making the descents very dangerous, it was also cold, particularly at altitude. Fourteen riders were forced to withdraw including Ivan Basso, Luis Leon Sanchez, Wout Poels, Lieuwe Westra, Jelle Vanendert, Haimar Zubeldia, and Roman Kreuziger, several cited hypothermia as the reason. The reaction to the sudden bad weather was totally understandable, many of us feel bad anytime there is a dramatic swing in the conditions, imagine how bad that feels if you have to go out and cycle 169km in the mountains. As a result of the atrocious conditions a large number riders simply struggled with the conditions, losing their recent good form and producing sub par performances. While others, such as Alejandro Valverde, lost ground on descents. Valverde found himself adrift of the peloton as they approached the final climb, however after good work from Sylwester Szmyd and Jose Herrada, Valverde rode very well by himself on the final climb to finish only 50 seconds behind Vincenzo Nibali. Nibali looked comfortable once again, climbing with Chris Horner and kicking ahead of him to take 2nd and a few seconds advantage. Nibali still leads the race, with Horner now 50 seconds behind in 2nd and Valverde 3rd at 1:42.

 

Looking ahead to stage fifteen

Stage 15: Andorra – Peyragudes
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The longest stage of this Vuelta a Espana is expected to take place in the same awful weather that we saw today, if so it will be 232.5km of hell for the riders. Even in ideal weather stage fifteen is a monster, but with cold and rain added in this is just cruel. The two early climbs are brutes of 24.4km and 20 km, leg sapping challenges, particularly so given the weather. The final 50km of the stage was used in stage 17 of the 2012 Tour de France, a stage won by Alejandro Valverde, he will be very motivated to make up for today but it’s not going to be easy. It’s a great stage for a breakaway, if Nicolas Edet or Amets Txurruka do want to contend for the KoM Jersey then they absolutely have to get into the break.

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2013 Vuelta a Espana: Notes From Stage Thirteen

The break succeeds

Despite taking an age to escape the peloton, and failing to ever establish a large time gap, the break was able to stay clear and contest the stage win. It took about 70km for an 18 man break away to form, prior to that the racing had been faced paced and frantic as most teams attempted to get into the successful break. They had a lead of around 3:00 when it reached the Alto del Rat Penat, however strong riding by Michele Scarponi (Lampre-Merida) on the climb split them up and when some came back together on the descent it was down to 10 riders. Behind them Katusha had set a punishing pace on the climb, blowing the peloton apart and putting a lot of good riders under real pressure, including their own Dani Moreno. After the climb the peloton took a while to regroup and get organized, allowing some riders to rejoin them, though it was still only a 31 man peloton by the time it crossed the line. Ahead of them the 10 man break worked well and as it became increasingly clear they would fight for the stage win, they worked out which tactics suited them best. With a little under 8km to go, Jerome Coppel (Cofidis) and Egoi Martinez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) decided to go for a long attack, they were soon joined by Scarponi, all three believing their best chance came from riding away from the rest of the break. Bauke Mollema (Belkin) and Rinaldo Nocentini (AG2R) were the two likely winners if they all came to the end together. So it was they, along with Zabier Xandio (Sky Procycling) who worked hardest to bring the three leaders back, succeeding in doing so at the 2km to go mark. Coppel immediately attacked again, this time followed by Xandio, Nocentini and Warren Barguil (Argos-Shimano), once again they were caught but at the same time Barguil launched a solo attack. Perhaps he was underestimated, perhaps his companions were tired and hoping someone else would take up the chase, but either way they hesitated and that hesitation let Barguil build up a winning advantage. For Barguil there was no sense of hesitation or doubt, he simply went full throttle and landed a terrific victory. The 21 year old climber has a potentially glittering future, he has certainly looked the part throughout this race.

 

Looking ahead to stage fourteen, the race reaches the Pyrenees

Stage 14: Baga – Andorra
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The stage should see a rapid start, the opening 40km are downhill and a lot of riders will hope to make the break, KoM contenders in particular. At the 60km mark the riders face the Port de Envalira, an absolute brute of a climb at 26.7km, 5.2% with ramps up to 15%. The climb actually comes after a 20km uphill drag and at 2,410m is the highest point of this years race. It is followed by two more categorized climbs before the peloton reaches the final climb, the Collada de la Gallina, 7.2km long, 8% average gradient with a maximum of 15%. It made it’s debut in last years race and Alejandro Valverde won, beating Alberto Contador and Joaquim Rodriguez to the line. We can expect fireworks tomorrow, the Port de Envalira should provide a large initial selection and the final climb should see a battle between the top GC riders. There could be huge time differences on this stage, anyone who has a bad day has lost the race.

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