The victories are resisted for a long time. It is always in the fight, especially in the return, where the hard drought … four years. The M logo could barely be seen in that 2021 in among the fog of the Alto del Gamoniteiru, conquered by Miguel Ángel López. The last Superman service. A few days later he told them ‘I stay here’. There is no longer, nor Valverde, and with Enric Mas and Nairo Quintana injured, Pablo Castrillo, winner of two stages last year with Kern Pharma, and Javi Romo presented themselves as their best buzas to meet the goal.
The two leaked in the good escape, which cost 100 kilometers to form, at 50 kilometers per hour, and caused the escape of the escape, as their Congo Cente García Acosta director instructed. It was the home stage. For Chente, and for the Movistar, of Alma Navarra and international projection. But they were accompanied by a bad client, Jay came.
They attacked him as a duo. First Romo, which comes from triathlon and is getting better uphill. And then Castrillo, accustomed to twisting on the bicycle and moving forward. “It has been a rise with a lot of fatigue,” he is right to say in goal between gasps. It was several meters of advantage. A dozen seconds. “I thought I could maintain,” the Oscense was excited. Behind, Almeida attacked. You may need Vine’s help. But Vingegaard and Pidcock resisted.
Free road for the Australian, who had “dead dead until then. He released Romo, captured Castrillo and left him behind in the absence of five kilometers. “He has been very strong,” he laments. Again that the Movistar has to sing the ‘poor of me’. Together with Cofidis, Intemché, Bahrein, and Arkea, they are the only World Tour team that has not won in the greats so far this year. «We are at all to arrive. The attitude is very good, ”Castrillo is encouraged, one of those involved in the fall that involved 30 cyclists at the beginning of the stage. “We were filing like animals,” said Raúl García leg, the most affected. The one who had to leave.
Sendaviva’s natural park houses up to 200 species of different animals, although cyclists are all cut by the same pattern. Although they have the jirons made, they are survivors. Like Joel Nicolau, escape and with his back to the air after the “Tortazo.” In the south of Navarra, Miguel Induráin, extraterrestrial of flesh and blood is manifested, to anticipate what was going to be the outcome of the stage. «We have good runners, but we are missing. We will spend years of transition, ”he says about Spanish cycling, before promoting the stage of his house, of the Royal Bardenas to Roncal and the Pyrenees. From the desert to the mountain.
The race jumped from the air from the exit flag. Vine came to give it impossible to escape. “Boys, I think we will not get it, let’s keep tomorrow,” he said on the radio. There was a moment that the visma, fed up with chasing, became belligerent. Championaerts with Vingegaard, to the attack with an attitude of ‘who does not want broth, give him two cups’. The UAE was caught by surprise. Ahead, looking for the leak. Soler had to do off. The fusion of fatigue. There came the good attacks. About thirty runners took advantage: among them, Castrillo, Romo and Aular (Movistar), Tejada, Masnada and Conci (Astana), Vine and Bjerg (UAE), Armirail and Staune Mittet (Decathlon), Kwiatkowski (INEOS) and LECEF (SOUTH), the best classified. They left shortly after the passage through Lumbier, where a pair of Protestants jumped to the road and made the forces of the order act.
Tired and with lack of understanding, the getaway was reduced to Castrillo, Romo, Vine, Bernard, Ryan, Azparren, Balderston, Conci, Vermaerke and Segaert, also extrincial, which took distance before facing the climb to Belagua, constant at 8% and stirred in the beginning and soft in the final two kilometers. The squad accelerated again at the foot of the port, by placement and because the UAE also wanted to play the Almeida letter. There Ayuso showed that at least part of his words at the exit were true. He was going to strive for the Portuguese.
The Alicante accelerated the rhythm, left the group of the favorites selected and just two minutes of race head. He prepared Almeida’s attack. The first. He left Bernal, Gall, Ciccone and finally the leader brings, who says goodbye to red. But his wheel was still Vingegaard and Pidcock with a good face, in addition to Jorgenson, Riccitello and the two Redbull-Bora. The second attack cut Hindley and Pellizzari. But the Danish and the British resisted apparently.
Induráin was waiting for them, who until he arrived in Les Arcs was not seen to suffer. Even if he did. Are you dizzy. For getting up by car. He wears Vingegaard leader, delighted with life. «Being on the podium with Miguel Induráin, a great champion, a legend, is a great experience. I am always glad to have the leader jersey; This is one of the most beautiful mailts of cycling, ”he says. The five -tours winner sees him well, but warns. “He carries the beating of the tour, the last week is long,” he predicts in the microphones of the SER. Although to overthrow him, he encourages UAE to decide. To mushrooms or rolex. “Some of the same team throw in front for the stage and then to break the leader … I don’t understand much of this modern cycling.”
