Cycling: An international starting field, a varied course in a great landscape and a thrilling race right up to the last minute: the Tour of Spain 2015 offered great sport. Velomotion looks back.
When he crossed the finish line 20st stage drove, Fabio Aru (Astana) cheered exuberantly. Not because he celebrated a stage win. He did not manage this feat at this year's Vuelta. Rather, the just 25-year-old Italian secured his first victory in a three-week tour in Cercedilla. The keys to Aru's success were his consistency over the three weeks, an amazingly good time trial after which he was the only favorite to remain within striking distance of Dutchman Tom Dumoulin (Giant-Alpecin), and Astana's impressive team strength. Maybe that was it involuntary departure of nominal captain Vincenzo Nibali the prerequisite for Aru to be able to drive to victory in Spain. At the latest, after teammate Mikel Landa on the 9st stage had lost a lot of time, Aru was the sole leader at Astana.
The winner
Aru's star rose in 2014 when, somewhat surprisingly, he finished third in the Giro d'Italia and won a stage. He confirmed his special talent for three-week tours in the same year when he finished fifth in the Tour of Spain and won two stages. In 2015 he fought a gripping duel with Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) at the Giro d'Italia and won two stages. In the overall standings, he had to make do with second place, and for a long time at this year's Tour of Spain it looked as if Aru would miss the title by a hair's breadth - until he finally managed to knock Tom Dumoulin off the thorn on stage 20. The strength of his team was also of crucial importance, above all - as in the Giro d'Italia - a very strong Mikel Landa. This won not only the difficult 11th stage in Andorra, but also paved the way for the decision in favor of Arus in the crucial 20th stage. The next year, the two become competitors: Landa moves to Team Sky. After this outstanding year, he will hardly be content to play the domestics for Chris Froome. If he should go to the Giro d'Italia as captain, high tension should be guaranteed. Because now that Fabio Aru has finally won his first Grand Tour, it will be his declared goal to also win the tour in his home country of Italy.
The top ten
Aru was framed on the Vuelta podium by overall second Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) and third Rafal Majka (Tinkoff-Saxo). While the 36-year-old Spaniard celebrated a stage win and has been on the podium in a Grand Tour for the fifth time, the Pole, who is ten years his junior, is on the podium of a three-week tour for the first time. With his three stage victories in the Tour de France and the most recent top result in Spain, Majka is the figurehead of Polish cycling alongside world champion Michal Kwiatkowski (Etixx-Quick Step). If he continues to develop as positively as in recent years, he could one day become the first Polish winner of a Grand Tour.
The story of the 2015 Vuelta a España would of course be incomplete without Tom Dumoulin. The Dutchman already appeared to be in top form at the Tour de France in July: third in the Tour de Suisse, fourth in the Tour's opening time trial and a very vigilant stage to Zeeland, where he was among the few riders to finish lost no time at the edge of the wind, made everyone sit up and take notice. But hopes were dashed in the heavy mass crash on the stage to Huy. Dumoulin recovered from his injuries, rebuilt his form for the Tour of Spain - and rode the best Grand Tour of his career so far. In the end there are not only two stage wins and six days in the red jersey of the front runner.
Dumoulin drove highly concentrated, divided his strength perfectly and maintained his chances of winning against the lightweight climbing specialists in a Vuelta, which was always very hilly, until the penultimate day. His tactics weren't just to use his enormous time trial strength á la Miguel Indurain and not to be left behind in the mountains. Rather, Dumoulin attacked several times himself and won Hilltop finish at Cumbre del Sol. "This Vuelta was a day too long for me," admitted Dumoulin. "I tried everything to keep the podium or the top five, but in the end I was just exhausted." The bottom line is that his team Giant-Alpecin was not able to support Dumoulin optimally in the mountains. He was often isolated and had the full power of Astana breathing down his neck. But the 24-year-old Dutchman has great potential for the future. It has been 26 years since a Dutchman has worn a yellow jersey in the Tour de France. Anyone who has seen Tom Dumoulin ride this Tour of Spain would like to believe that the waiting time will soon be over.
Esteban Chaves (Orica-GreenEdge) and Louis Meintjes (MTN-Qhubeka) also stand out from the top ten. Colombian Chaves won the stages in King's Path and Mountain range of Cazorla and wore the leader's jersey for six days. In the high mountains he couldn't keep up with the leaders, but he never lost any significant time and made up a few positions in the final week. He is also only 25 years old and is one of those young drivers who shaped the image of this Vuelta and wants to have a say in the awarding of the greatest victories in the coming years. The 23-year-old South African Meintjes made it into the top ten, but was less sensational but nonetheless promising. He was more of a second row during the three weeks and only managed one daily top ten finish, but was always within striking distance and proved his talent for three week tours. Even if his performance may have seemed inconspicuous, this tour of Spain was a very important step for the development of the young racing driver.
The Beaten
Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing) will have mixed feelings about the 2015 season. First the very strong performance at the Criterium du Dauphiné, then the bitter end of the Tour de France and finally the disappointment of the Vuelta: on the 8th stage, the American fell badly and broke his shoulder, the season is probably over. It was a similar story for Chris Froome (Team Sky), who started the race with ambitions, but was mostly distanced on the first mountain climbs and then broke his navicular bone in a fall on the stage in Andorra. Things didn't go according to plan for Vincenzo Nibali either: the Italian wanted to save his season in Spain, but was disqualified on the second stage after letting the team vehicle pull him too far.
Ultimately, Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) were also beaten, although they should be pleased with their performances. Quintana finished fourth, Valverde won 4st stage and finished seventh overall. However, both were never really able to intervene in the fight for the red jersey. Already in the first stage in Caminito del Rey, Quintana reached his limits after his attack and was distanced, later he struggled with illnesses and only got going towards the end of the tour. Valverde drove aggressively as usual, but this time he couldn't keep up with the best, especially in the high mountains.
Hustle and bustle with the sprinters
The sprint arrivals saw a rare change: while at the Tour de France it was André Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) in particular, who rode in his own league and achieved one victory after the next, at the Tour of Spain everyone was able to enter the list of winners once. Peter Sagan (Tinkoff Saxo) triumphed in Malaga, Caleb Ewan (Orica-GreenEdge) had at stage five ahead, Jasper Stuyven and Danny van Poppel won the stages for Trek Factory Racing eight and twelve, Kristian Sbaragli (MTN-Qhubeka) def. John Degenkolb in Castellón, and who in turn pointed to the Final stage in Madrid all the rear wheel.
So peace, joy, pancakes everywhere? Certainly not, the discussions about driver safety were too loud. For Peter Sagan, the Vuelta was after one Collision with a motorcycle finished, so it happened Sergio Paulino (Tinkoff Saxo). Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) was involved in several falls, after the big crash on the 8th stage it was over for him. It got even worse Kris Boeckmans (Lotto-Soudal), who had to be put into an artificial coma after his fall, but has now woken up and is on the mend. With all the spectacle that the Tour of Spain and cycling in general have offered so far this year, safe racing conditions and the health of the riders must always come first.
Otherwise worth seeing
The second-class team Caja Rural - Seguros RGA drove a spirited Tour of Spain. Almost every day the men in the green and white jerseys were in the breakaways, with José Goncalves alone collecting five top ten finishes. It wasn't enough for a stage win, but Omar Fraile's mountain jersey was more than a consolation.
Ruben Plaza's (Lampre-Merida) 120km solo to victory on stage 20 was definitely one of the tour de force's highlights. And Frank Schleck (Trek Factory Racing) showed with his victory on the 16st stagethat it is far from being old-fashioned.
Conclusion
Was the Tour of Spain the most exciting tour of the year? Based solely on the number of changes at the top of the overall classification, one would have to answer this question in the affirmative. The red jersey changed hands eight times. There were “only” five changes at the Giro and Tour. The decision about overall victory was a matter of seconds up to the penultimate stage, in the end the first and second placed were separated by a paltry 57 seconds. But even at the Giro and Tour, the gaps were less than two minutes - no comparison to the huge gaps of previous years. The bottom line is that all three Grand Tours 2015 spoiled the fans with thrilling cycling. The Tour of Spain actually stood out a bit. And it will be exciting to see how the young protagonists of this race will fare in the years to come.
Leave a Comment