The young Belgian was one of the main protagonists on stage 10.
Mauri Vansevenant showcased his undoubted talent, delivering a brave ride en route to his first Grand Tour stage podium. It all happened Tuesday afternoon, when the race resumed after a well-deserved rest day with a 189km journey from Roquetas de Mar to Rincon de la Victoria, which had a largely flat course that featured only a classified climb, albeit a demanding one, inside the final hour of racing.
As expected, a huge breakaway group got clear, but only after a rapid start which witnessed numerous attempts from those who didn’t pose a threat to the general classification. Both Andrea Bagioli, a top 3 finisher last week on the uphill finish of Alto de la Cullera, and Mauri Vansevenant were there for Deceuninck – Quick-Step, helping the move take their advantage over the peloton to more than three minutes.
When the group split on the flat roads leading to the bottom of Puerto del Almachar (10.9km, 4.9%), our youngsters put in a strong effort and helped the chasers join the attackers midway up the climb. Soon after this happened, more attacks came, Andrea being among those who tried their chance. Around three kilometers from the top, Michael Storer (Team DSM) rode away while behind a small group featuring Mauri – who showed the same grit and determination that have become his trademarks since turning pro – pulled clear from the large field and attempted to bring back the Australian.
The trio reduced the gap to the leader, but ran out of road and were left fighting for runner-up and third, and it was Vansevenant, who had proved his fast turn of legs at the end of a hard race with other occasions, who took second place at the end of the day for our team’s sixth podium since the start of the race.
“Today was really tough. We rode full gas for two hours until a breakaway formed, and once this happened, it was good to be there with Andrea. We all knew the last climb would be decisive and you could see that’s where the attacks came. We trailed the guy in the front by around 50 seconds at the top, and worked together managing to claw back time, but despite our effort we couldn’t catch him. In the sprint I had confidence and got a solid second, which will give me the motivation to try again, but I won’t hide the fact I am a bit disappointed as I would have loved to win”, the 22-year-old Belgian said.
Photo credit: ©Stuart Franklin / Getty Images
