Alberto Contador and Nairo Quintana break away right from the start of Stage 15 and aided by their team mates in the same move caught Team Sky having a siesta. Froome gave chase but quickly ran out of team mates and could only manage to limit his losses as Quintana went up the road and Sky’s plans went up in smoke. This was the moment the race was won.
The traditional parade into Madrid to crown the winner and offer a last sprint finish for those who’ve stayed the course. The finish is later than usual.
Another day, another summit finish. This is the last decisive stage of the Vuelta and it ends with a giant 21km summit finish.
Notionally a crucial time trial, last weekend’s racing saw Nairo Quintana build a big lead over Chris Froome and the Colombian’s margin looks secure. But there’s all to play for with the stage win and Alberto Contador is only handful of seconds off a podium finish this Sunday.
A long and scenic stage, normally promised to the sprinters but with so few of them left, the hilly terrain could help another breakaway stay away for the day.
With the rest day done the Vuelta enters the final phase towards its conclusion in Madrid this Sunday. A hilly stage awaits with an early opening climb and a tricky uphill finish.
A day trip to the seaside for the peloton ahead of the rest day. An extended day off? Unlikely given the intensity of riders battling to get in the breakaways but it should mean a quieter day for the overall contenders.
Labelled by everyone as the Queen Stage of the race, today’s route is packed with climbing and ends with a tough summit finish. Nairo Quintana leads the race but has to take time on Chris Froome. Can he do it?
Ban powermeters? After Nairo Quintana’s statement a few readers have emailed in asking for thoughts on this. For starters the possibility of a ban happening seems somewhere between impossible and unimaginable so any debate is academic.
