Stage 9 at the Vuelta a España was always meant to be a day for the sprinters but it ended with controversy following a bunch sprint that saw Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-QuickStep) cross the line first before being relegated to the back of the pack by race officials.
The race commissaires ruled that Bennett had been overly aggressive after he twice shoulder bumped Emils Liepins (Trek-Segafredo) inside the final kilometre. The stage win was awarded to Pascal Ackermann (Bora-Hansgrohe) instead.
The 158km race between Castrillo del Val and Aguilar de Campoo saw a breakaway clear the field that included Juan Felipe Osorio (Burgos-BH) and Aritz Bagues (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA). Although they gained upwards of five minutes it was never going to make it to the finish line as Bennett's Deceuninck-QuickStep squad control the speeds from the main field in pursuit of the stage win.
The day's win went to Ackermann, however, with all of the main GC contenders finishing safely in the bunch. Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) maintained his lead in the overall classification at 13 seconds ahead of Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma), while Dan Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation) is third at 28 seconds.
