Key Takeaways: Vuelta a España Stage 8

Breaking down how an explosive finish was won & how it continued to bring the GC picture into clearer focus

Primož Roglič kept his gradual assault on Ben O’Connor’s race lead at full pressure when he lined out the front group and left his GC rivals in his wake on the ultra-steep final climb deep in the olive groves of Jaén before surging clear to win his fourth career Vuelta a España. Behind, only Movistar’s Enric Mas, after an inspired ride, could stay with Roglič, while every other overall favorite lost significant chunks of time, with race leader O’Connor finishing 46 seconds back and surrendering a further ten due to time bonuses.

Stage Top Five:
1) Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +0
2) Enric Mas (Movistar) +0
3) Mikel Landa (Soudal Quick-Step) +14
4) Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious) +17
5) Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) +21

Time Select GC Contenders Gained(+)/Lost(-) On the Stage:
Primož Roglič +0
Enric Mas -4
Mikel Landa -20
Antonio Tiberi -27
Herold Tejada -28
Mattias Skjelmose -31
Carlos Rodríguez -31
Lennert Van Eetvelt -39
Richard Carapaz -49
George Bennett -49
Ben O’Connor -56
Isaac Del Toro -1’11
Sepp Kuss -1’17
João Almeida -5’03

Current GC Top Five
1) Ben O'Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) +0
2) Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +3’49
3) Enric Mas (Movistar) +4’31
4) Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious) +5’00
5) Mikel Landa (Soudal Quick-Step) +5’13

Stage 8 Race Notebook

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