cycling: Vuelta a Espana Stage #15: Brambilla Wins Race of the Year

Cycling: Yesterday we talked about an amazing stage, but today we are really looking in vain for suitable superlatives. With an early attack from Alberto Contador (Tinkoff), all the principles of modern cycling were thrown overboard. At the end of the day, Gianluca Brambilla (Etixx-Quick Step) won the stage but Contador and Nairo Quintana (Movistar) were the big winners. On the other hand, Chris Froome (Sky) and the two captains of the Orica-BikeExchange team can be described as big losers.

Contador and Quintana make for a historic race

Yesterday the spectators at the Vuelta a Espana got to see an amazing race, which was surpassed again today. Although only 118,5 kilometers had to be covered on the way from Sabiñánigo to Sallent de Gállego, this fact was probably the reason why things got down to business right after the start. True to the motto "brevity is the spice" Alberto Contador (Tinkoff) attacked with half his team just a few kilometers after the start. While Nairo Quintana (Movistar) called immediately, Foome and his team Sky were completely distanced. After this first big chaos, the spectators had to get an overview: 14 riders were at the front of the race, including Contador and Quintana, each with two helpers and the two candidates for the mountain jersey Kenny Elissonde (FDJ) and Omar Fraile ( dimension data). Behind him was a slightly larger chasing group around Chris Froome, who only had David Lopez at his side. Things went similarly badly for Simon Yates and Esteban Chaves from the Orica-BikeExchange team, but at least they still had some teammates at their side.

Brambilla wins - Quintana faces Vuelta victory

The gap between the first and second group increased kilometer by kilometer. Although Chris Froome was initially able to rely on the help of his teammate David Lopez, he eventually flew back as well. That put all of his helpers in the big third group, which was to end up with a huge deficit by the end of the day. This situation left Froome with no choice but to rely on the other teams for help. It was Astana and above all Orica-BikeExchange who had to step on the gas for about 100 kilometers. Their opponents from the first group were called Tinkoff and Movistar. When it came to the final climb, the two fields separated by about two minutes. At the front, Quintana took control and shook off all the riders except Gianluca Brambilla (Etixx-Quick Step). He finally sprinted over the Colombian and won the stage. Contador lost about half a minute on Quintana, while everything fell apart in the second field. Chaves in particular saved the day somewhat by finishing ninth in the stage and not losing two minutes. The final climb was much worse for Froome, because he seemed to collapse and conceded more than two and a half minutes. This puts Quintana on course for overall victory at the Vuelta a Espana as he now has a lead of over three minutes over Froome.

Vuelta a Espana Stage #15 – The daily standings:

Vuelta a Espana Stage #15 – Overall standings: