The veteran, who finished third on stage 2 of the race, went down along with teammate Carlos Barbero in the crash, on the 151km stage from León to Villafranca del Bierzo. According to a team press release, Bennati suffered a blow to his right shoulder, while Barbero injured an elbow.
Later on, the pair were taken to a hospital in Ponferrada for further exams, which revealed that Bennati had fractured his collarbone. Barbero suffered a contusion, but no broken bones.
Bennati lay fourth overall at the time of the crash, but keeps his final result, just one second off the podium, as the crash happened in the final 3km of the race. It's the best result of the season for Bennati, who is riding his 18th season a professional this year.
During his long career, Bennati has won eight Grand Tour stages as well as the points classifications at the Vuelta a España and Giro d'Italia. In later years – including his three at Movistar – he has been utilised mostly as a domestique, with his most recent win coming at the Giro della Toscana in 2016.
Davide Cimolai (Israel Cycling Academy) won the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon by 15 seconds from teammate Guillaume Boivin. The Italian won the opening two stages before finishing eighth on the final stage to seal the first stage race victory of his career.
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Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, joining in 2017 as a freelance contributor and later being hired full-time. Before joining the team, they had written for numerous major publications in the cycling world, including CyclingWeekly and Rouleur.
Dani has reported from the world's top races, including the Tour de France, Road World Championships, and the spring Classics. They have interviewed many of the sport's biggest stars, including Mathieu van der Poel, Demi Vollering, and Remco Evenepoel. Their favourite races are the Giro d'Italia, Strade Bianche and Paris-Roubaix.
