'I just love racing from the front' - Ben O'Connor relishes his unexpected lead in Vuelta a España

Ben O'Connor leads the Vuelta a España heading into the second week
Ben O'Connor leads the Vuelta a España heading into the second week (Image credit: Getty Images)

When Ben O’Connor left the field behind on stage 6, he didn’t foresee the sizeable grasp on the maillot rojo and overall race lead that he carried into the Vuelta a España’s first rest day, and neither did his rivals.

Sitting 3:53 ahead of race favourite Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), O’Connor’s margin was considered a gap left to get “out of hand” on stage 6, but with his strong defence of the jersey on Sunday’s stage 9 the Australian rider suddenly seems like a major threat to the overall win.

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Peter Stuart
Editor

Peter Stuart has been the editor of Cyclingnews since March 2022, overseeing editorial output across all of Cyclingnews' digital touchpoints.

Before joining Cyclingnews, Peter was the digital editor of Rouleur magazine. Starting life as a freelance feature writer, with bylines in The Times and The Telegraph, he first entered cycling journalism in 2012, joining Cyclist magazine as staff writer. Peter has a background as an international rower, representing Great Britain at Under-23 level and at the Junior Rowing World Championships.