Juan Ayuso foresees Angliru challenge to Jumbo-Visma's Vuelta a España dominance

Juan Ayuso may be forgiven for having déjà vu on the second rest day of the Vuelta a España. Last year, on his debut at the age of 19, the Spaniard headed into the final week at 4:49 down on race leader Remco Evenepoel following a brutal climb of Sierra Nevada.

This time around, with six days to go he's back in fourth place, albeit this time only 2:37 off the red jersey, held by Sepp Kuss at the head of a Jumbo-Visma triumvirate.

Ayuso heads up a three-pronged attack of his own at UAE Team Emirates, with teammates Marc Soler (sixth at 3:10) and João Almeida (10th at 8:39) also lying inside the top 10 on GC.

The duo of trios face a tougher final week in comparison to 2022 – the Alto de L'Angliru and Puerto de la Cruz de Linares are the toughest of four upcoming mountainous days – with Ayuso seeing the disturbingly steep Angliru (where the numbers of 12.4km and 9.8% somehow undersell the challenges of the climb) as the place to take the fight to Jumbo-Visma.

"Having three guys like they did on Tourmalet is not so much of an effect because being on the wheel isn't an advantage," Ayuso said in Monday's rest day press conference, referring to the Dutch squad's domination of stage 13.

"I think for us the best stage is Angliru. I think the next day, the Puerto de la Cruz de Linares is even harder than Angliru. But there again we have climbs which, if you're in the wheel, it does help.

"I think the biggest day where everyone is going to try and take on Jumbo is Angliru because of this. We just have to hope that on that day, they don't have the legs and that we can drop them."

In the quest to topple the Jumbo-Visma podium sitters, Ayuso and his UAE Team Emirates teammates aren't inclined to immediately seek partnerships with other teams, however.

"On the side of Almeida and Soler, of course, it's good to have them," he said. "But at the end of the day, the other teams like Bahrain Victorious and Bora-Hansgrohe are still rivals.

"Of course, if there's a situation where we can work together to put Jumbo-Visma under pressure then we will. Maybe we can race together but as I say, at the end of the day they're also rivals."

'Until we arrive in Madrid, anything can happen'

Ayuso finished last year's Vuelta in third overall, 4:57 down on Evenepoel and behind Movistar's Enric Mas, who sits 29 seconds behind him heading into stage 16.

He lies at a minute behind three-time race winner Primož Roglič in second and 53 seconds down on Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard – the two men with five Grand Tours to their name while the remainder of the top 10 have zero.

With the state of the GC standings – and Jumbo-Visma's staggering dominance – in mind, it's no surprise, then, that Ayuso sees the 'killer bees', rather than the Cantabrian and Asturian peaks, as the main obstacle during the Vuelta's final week.

"Their three riders have been solid up to now and haven't had any weak days," he said. "And it's not only the three riders on the podium but also the team behind them, all the teammates they have. They're the strongest team and on a very high level, so for them, it's easy to control the race and put out the rhythm they want.

"They're on a great level so it makes an attack from far really, really hard to do. But until we arrive in Madrid, anything can happen. So, we have to keep the positive vibes going and keep on trying.

"This year the third week is different from last year," he added. "We have the hardest stages coming up now whereas last year the hardest stages were at the end of the second week.

"I'm maintaining my level quite well. I'm going to the third week not with freshness but ready to take on the hardest stages so I'm going in with some confidence."

Ayuso, whose rise in the sport has seen him sweep through the Spanish stage racing scene as a junior and win the U23 Giro d'Italia at the age of 18, has made another step since last September, he said, comparing his GC place to where he lay during last year's second rest day.

"Overall, yes I have improved, and I think that's what makes the difference. Last year I was entering the second rest day in fourth on GC, but I was five minutes away from the leader's jersey. This year it's two minutes and a big part of it is because of a big breakaway [Kuss gained almost three minutes in a break on stage 6 – Ed.].

"To second and third - I think I'm less than one minute, no? That shows I've improved a lot and I'm happy with that."

Ayuso, who turns 21 on the penultimate day of the Vuelta, ascended to the white jersey as best young rider on the momentous Tourmalet stage which saw Evenepoel and Almeida drop 90km from the line.

He wore it last year, too, of course, though only as fellow under-25 rider Evenepoel was already in red. Now, he looks secure at 2:53 up on Cian Uijtdebroeks (Bora-Hansgrohe) in the classification. However, his final week is geared more towards a stage victory and a place on the final podium in Madrid.

"This year I do feel like the white jersey is special because as you say it's the first time it's actually mine," Ayuso said. "Last year I wore it almost all Vuelta, but it wasn't actually mine – it was all Remco.

"So, this time is the first time in a Grand Tour that it is mine. For sure it's special, but I think that the ambitions and objectives are for the podium and a stage win rather than the white jersey. But, as I say, it is still special because it's the first time it's mine."