Less than 20 seconds stand between the Basque and the top three.
Puerto de Ancares made its first appearance in a decade at the Vuelta a España, and Mikel Landa used the steep climb – which was tackled from a different side than ten years ago – to gain more time on most of his opponents. Just 7.5 kilometers in length, but averaging 9.3%, Ancares dealt a blow to many of the GC riders’ hopes, its steep gradients taking its toll on them in the never-ending last two kilometers.
When the going got tough, Mikel Landa was there, making it into a small group that pushed on as the ramps stiffened, dropping the red jersey. One of the most experienced climbers in this Vuelta, Landa dug deep and managed to open a gap as he entered the final kilometer of the stage. There, he linked up with Kasper Asgreen – who had been part of the original breakaway – and the Dane, despite being empty after a whole day at the front, summoned the last drop of energy he had to pace his T-Rex Quick-Step teammate to the finish line.
Landa, fifth at this year’s Tour de France, sits in the same place after this stage, but more importantly, he moved closer to the overall podium of the race, only 19 seconds separating him from third ahead of the penultimate weekend, which will bring another demanding climb, Cuitu Negru.
“Today was another hard day, and on the final climb it was all about finding your own tempo and doing your best to limit the losses. I did just that, also with some help from Kasper, to whom I want to thank for his effort and monster pull. In the end, it was a good stage for us. We continue with our plan to take it day by day, because there are plenty of tough hard climbs left at this race”, Mikel said at the finish.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images
Mikel Landa 
