‘It’s about making myself as useful as possible for as long as possible’ – Darren Rafferty marks debut Vuelta a España with stirring cameo

Darren Rafferty buries himself on stage 9 of the Vuelta for Richard Carapaz
Darren Rafferty buries himself on stage 9 of the Vuelta for Richard Carapaz (Image credit: Getty Images)

Darren Rafferty was asked to linger a little longer than his EF Education-EasyPost teammates at the signing-on podium in Ponteareas on Tuesday morning. The Irish champion’s striking efforts on behalf of his leader Richard Carapaz on stage 9 of the Vuelta a España had not gone unnoticed, and he was presented with the solidarity jersey, awarded to the day’s outstanding domestique.

“I think I got a bit of TV time, but everybody on the team is doing similar work,” Rafferty told Cyclingnews. “Earlier in the week, I wasn’t as useful as some of my teammates, and they’ve been stepping up whenever I’ve been weaker than I would have liked. So sometimes you get the limelight, but it’s a big team effort at the end of the day.”

Barry Ryan
Head of Features

Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.