Cycling: Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) has proven once again that he is probably the strongest climber at the Vuelta a España next to Chris Froome (Sky). The Colombian was able to break away from the favorites on the short king's stage and collect all breakaways. Behind them, Chris Froome (Sky) effortlessly defended the red jersey.
Fast start
Today, at the Vuelta a España, the only 129,4-kilometre long king's stage was on the agenda. The drivers were on their way from Alcala la Real to the famous Sierra Nevada. Two mountains of the first category had to be completed before the final ascent of the Especial category could be climbed. At 19,3 kilometres, this is enormously long, but at times a little steeper on the Rollerberg. As is usual with short stages, things got down to business right from the start. In the first hour of racing, 51 kilometers were covered. A group of ten was able to break away, but this should not play a role in the stage victory. Romain Bardet (Ag2r), Adam Yates (Orica-Scott) and Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) rode a first decisive action. The trio drove to the sole leader Sander Armée (Lotto Soudal) and then left him behind. A little later, Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) and Alberto Contador (Trek-Segafredo) also attacked from the field.
Lopez brutally strong
Out of the original lead quartet, Yates proved to be the strongest driver. But behind it, Miguel Angel Lopez stepped up a gear. The Colombian left Contador and Co. standing, drove up to Yates and didn't give him a chance either. Due to the speed dictated by the Sky team, all the fugitives were gradually collected again. Only Miguel Angel Lopez was able to successfully complete his ride to the end. The Colombian can look forward to his second stage win at this year's Vuelta a España. Meanwhile, Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha-Alpecin) broke away from the group of favorites. The Russian finished second, gaining 61 seconds on Froome. The Brit ended up fifth, behind Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) and another very strong Wilco Kelderman (Sunweb). However, Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain Merida) can be described as the loser of the day. He lost six seconds on the red jersey. This puts him XNUMX seconds behind Froome in the overall standings.
# LV2017 Another strong ride from @W1lcokelderman today as he takes 3rd on the stage! #KeepChallenging pic.twitter.com/EV5zYMkp9R
— Team Sunweb (@TeamSunweb) September 3, 2017
Vuelta a España stage #15 daily classification
| PLATZ | Driver | Country | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Miguel Angel Lopez | Colombia | Astana | 3:34:51 |
| 2. | Ilnur Zakarin | Russia | Katusha Alpecin | + 0: 36 |
| 3. | wilco kelderman | Netherlands | Sunweb | + 0: 45 |
| 4. | Stephen Chaves | Colombia | Orica Scott | + 0: 47 |
| 5. | Chris Froome | Great Britain | Sky | st |
| 6. | Michael Woods | Canada | Cannondale Drapac | + 0: 50 |
| 7. | Vincenzo Nibali | Italy | Bahrain Merida | + 0: 53 |
| 8. | Wout poels | Netherlands | Sky | st |
| 9. | louis meintjes | South Africa | UAE | st |
| 10. | bilbao hair | Spain | Astana | + 1: 02 |
Vuelta a España stage #15 general classification
| PLATZ | Driver | Country | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Chris Froome | Great Britain | Sky | 62:06:25 |
| 2. | Vincenzo Nibali | Italy | Bahrain-Merida | + 1: 01 |
| 3. | Ilnur Zakarin | Russia | Katusha Alpecin | + 2: 08 |
| 4. | wilco kelderman | Netherlands | Sunweb | + 2: 11 |
| 5. | Stephen Chaves | Colombia | Orica Scott | + 2: 39 |
| 6. | Miguel Angel Lopez | Colombia | Astana | + 2: 51 |
| 7. | Fabio Arau | Italy | Astana | + 3: 24 |
| 8. | Michael Woods | Canada | Cannondale Drapac | + 3: 26 |
| 9. | Alberto counter | Spain | Trek-Segafredo | + 3: 59 |
| 10. | David of the Cross | Spain | Quick Step Floors | + 5: 22 |