Stage 17 of the Vuelta a España brings the peloton to the testing category 2 finale at Monasterio de Tentudía, but the tenor of the race is rather different following the news that Primoz Roglic has abandoned due to the injuries he sustained in his crash in the final metres of yesterday's stage.
Roglic was second overall, 1:26 (and closing) off Evenepoel's red jersey. His absence extends Evenepoel's buffer beyond two minutes and redraws the race for overall victory and for the podium. The revised standings look as follows:
Jumbo-Visma directeur sportif Addy Engels has spoken to reporters, including our own Alasdair Fotheringham, at the start in Aracena. "Primoz had a bad night and he had a lot of pain, which is also the reason he is not able to start today," said Engels, who confirmed that Engels had no sustained a concussion in the crash. "No. When he came to the bus, it was very hard for him, more like mentally broken. But there was no sign of concussion.
More Engels: "It’s incredibly hard of course. He was not done yet in this race, which he showed yesterday. Of course it’s a big blow when you crash out of the Tour last year, you crash out of the Tour this year, and then you also crash out of the Vuelta at this moment of the race, still fighting for victory. It’s mentally incredibly hard, of course, to get over."
Engels added that he is still at a loss to explain how Roglic crashed. Like the rest of us, he has been poring over cycling's answer to the Zapruder film since yesterday evening. "It’s really a good question and a difficult one to answer," Engels said. "Every time you see the image from a different angle, at the moment the crash is happening, the camera is moving. I did not see any strange move in the group, so in the end, to me, it looks like me it’s really an unlucky race incident without anyone to blame – just bad luck with big consequences."
Today's stage gets underway at 13.05 local time, with the peloton hitting kilometre zero around 13.21. The lone classified climb is the category 2 ascent to the finish at Monasterio de Tentudia (10.3km at 5%), but route designer Fernando Escartin noted that there is scarcely a metre of flat all day, labelling this a "leg-breaker day, with constant ups and downs." The weather can often be sweltering at this time of year in Extremadura, but this afternoon, the peloton will avoid the worst excesses, with a maximum temperature of around 29 degrees Celsius forecast.
Alasdair Fotheringham is on the Vuelta for us, and he surveyed the scene in Tomares yesterday during the most frenetic moments of the race thus far. Roglic's attack was followed by Evenepoel's puncture and then the Slovenian's own, costly crash in the closing metres. In the immediate aftermath of the stage, it was a scramble to make sense of it, but Alasdair wrote this eyewitness piece on Roglic's latest high-profile heartbreak.
And Alasdair was also on hand in the mixed zone as red jersey Remco Evenepoel talked reporters though his own miniature ordeal in the finale in Tomares. The Belgian pressed back against the Adam Blythe-propagated conspiracy theory that he had faked his puncture in the final 3km. "Nobody can say anything. I'm not a guy who is going to fake such things," said Evenepoel. Read the full story here.
The absence of Roglic clearly changes the nature of Evenepoel's task at this Vuelta, even if the red jersey couldn't very well admit that when he passed through the mixed zone a few minutes ago. "Everybody is still dangerous, every day is dangerous, every corner is dangerous," he insisted. "we have to be careful and focus until Saturday evening - and even until Sunday evening."
The peloton is currently navigating the neutralised zone in Aracena. The town is home to the Gruta de las Maravillas - 'the grotto of the marvels' - a cave replete with spectacular stalactites and stalagmites, first opened to the public in 1913.
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There's a slightly downhill start from Aracena and the pace is brisk as a result, which is making it difficult for a breakaway to take shape at this early juncture.
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Jumbo-Visma directeur sportif Addy Engels visited the mixed zone this morning to put words on Roglic's abandon, and you can read his viewpoint in full here.
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The break grows in size, but their lead is still slender for now. Clément Champoussin, Bob Jungels (AG2R Citroën), Gino Mäder (Bahrain Victorious), Jesus Herrada (Cofidis), Rigoberto Uran (EF Education-EasyPost), Quentin Pacher (Groupama-FDJ), Lawson Craddock (BikeExchange-Jayco), Kenny Elissonde (Trek-Segafredo), Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) and Simon Guglielmi (Arkea-Samsic) are 14 seconds clear of the bunch, with Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious), Alessandro De Marchi (Israel-PremierTech) and Luis Angel Maté (Euskaltel-Euskadi) trying to bridge across.
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The break has grown to 13 riders, including the inevitable Fred Wright and the gap to the bunch is over half a minute. It looks, for now at least, as though the race may settle into a pattern of sorts, as the men caught in no man's lead have faded back into the bunch.
Juan Ayuso, we understand, is also back in the peloton after his earlier crash.
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Remco Evenepoel spoke before the start about how his race changes (or doesn't) in the absence of Roglic. The Belgian's lead is back out to 2:01 and the biggest obstacle to overall victory has been removed, but he insists his approach will not alter. "This doesn't change anything in our tactics or our mentality," Evenepoel said. "It's still the same feelings, the Vuelta is over in Madrid. It's going to change the race a little bit, but not our concentration or focus: that's not going to change at all." Read more here.
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Beyond Roglic, there were two other non-starters to report today. Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) has left citing fatigue, though it will be interesting to see if he is in action before long to chase UCI points for his team. Filippo Conca (Lotto Soudal) has also abandoned the Vuelta.
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Situation
The pace knocks off considerably as the bunch rolls through the feed zone in Brovales. 6:33 the gap to the break.
A crash in the peloton just after the feed zone, with Kaden Groves (BikeExchange-Jayco) the unfortunate faller. He is sitting up on the road, while the race doctor checks on his left shoulder. Three BikeExchange-Jayco teammates were waiting for Groves but they have elected to ride on, which doesn't augur well for his chances of staying in the race.
Groves gets gingerly back on his bike and starts riding again. He doesn't look especially comfortable - understandably - but he doesn't appear to have a broken collarbone and he is chasing back on through the team cars. A television replay suggests the unfortunate Groves got tangled up in his musette.
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At Valverde de Burguillos, the break's lead has nudged out beyond seven minutes. Uran has provisionally moved ahead of Ben O'Connor and is now 8th overall in the virtual standings. For now, there is no reaction in the peloton, where QuickStep continue to tap out a steady tempo for Evenepoel.
The frissons among the GC men, if they come today at all, will arrive on the final climb, the 10.3km ascent to Monasterio de Tentudia. It's a two-part ascent, with a gentle opening kilometre followed by some double-digit gradients before the road flattens out and even descends around the midpoint. The road kicks up again with a little over 4km to go, with long stretches where the gradients oscillates between 7 and 8% before it eases slightly in the last 400 metres or so.
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A puncture in the break for Elie Gesbert, who gets a replacement bike and looks like he will quickly rejoin his fellow escapees at the front.
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Speaking on TVE, Matxin Joxean Fernandez says that the knee injury sustained by Juan Ayuso in his earlier crash is of no great concern for UAE Team Emirates. Out in front, his teammate Marc Soler is arguably the man to watch from this break of thirteen.
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Craddock's teammate Groves, incidentally, is back in the bunch after his earlier crash.
The presence of two riders apiece from Arkea-Samsic, Bahrain Victorious and AG2R-Citroen means that this break is maintaining its cohesion for now, and they quickly bring back Craddock.
Rein Taaramae (Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert) has abandoned the Vuelta due to illness. The Estonian was 20th overall after yesterday's stage.
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Fred Wright led the break through the sprint, picking up another 20 points in the green jersey standings. He is second in the points classification, albeit still some 200 points off the unassailable Mads Pedersen.
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Our man in Spain Alasdair Fotheringham is at the finish and he tells us that the final climb to Monasterio de Tentudía is not the most imposing. The lower portion is quite straightforward, and the meat of the climb comes in the final 4km, after the section of descent midway up. There are no particularly steep sections in the finale, although the road is narrow.
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Craddock is joined at the front of the race by Pacher and Jungels, though the rest of the break is not far behind on this unclassified portion of climbing.
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With Wright dropped, there are twelve riders at the head of the race, and this break now risks beginning to splinter in this phase of attack and counter-attack. They still have 6:49 in hand on the bunch.
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Craddock extends his lead on a sweeping downhill section, hoping to take advantage of any lack of collaboration among the chasers behind him.
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Fred Wright claws his way back up to the chasing group and the Briton attacks immediately, setting off in pursuit of Craddock. Soler and Uran bring him to heel, and the now 12-man chasing group slows slightly.
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Situation
Movistar take up the reins at the head of the peloton on the approach to the climb, perhaps with an eye to teeing up a move from Enric Mas. He has to try to recoup that 2:01 on Evenepoel somewhere...
Luke Plapp comes to the front of the bunch for Ineos and Carlos Rodriguez. Evenepoel is tucked in alongside his QuickStep squad behind them.
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There is no real cohesion to the pursuit of Craddock for now, with the responsibility falling largely upon Wright on behalf of Mader.
7 minutes back the road, the speed is ratcheting upwards in the peloton before the climb. The GC men have all been briefed about the narrowing road and they will all want to be in front.
Comienzo puerto for the main peloton, where Ineos and Movistar are setting a hyperactive pace.
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Guglielmi has been working for Gesbert but he looks to be tiring, and Craddock's buffer is out to 26 seconds as he reaches the sector of false flat and descent in the middle of the climb...
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Remco Evenepoel is well placed near the front of the bunch, where Vincenzo Nibali is pacing Miguel Angel Lopez into a positon to strike...
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Craddock battles to maintain a lead of 11 seconds over Uran, Pacher and Gesbert. Champoussin is fifth on the road, but we have no information on the location of Wright, Mader, Soler et al for now.
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Pacher, Elissonde and Champoussin get back up to Uran, Herrada and Soler, but their deficit on Craddock is staying stable amid this stop-go tempo of the chasing group...
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Champoussin catches the leaders with 900m to go and he immediately accelerates. He doesn't get far before Herrada catches and passes him...
Jesus Herrada is alone at the head of the race, but Uran is chasing alone not far behind...
Uran is just metres behind Herrada as they reach the top of the climb... Pacher and Soler form another duo just behind them...
Uran catches and passes Herrada, while Pacher closes from behind...
Herrada is putting up fierce resistance but Uran looks like has this...
Rigoberto Uran (EF Education-EasyPost) wins stage 17 of the Vuelta a Espana.
Quentin Pacher (Groupama-FDJ) is second just ahead of Jesus Herrada (Cofidis).
Back in the peloton, Enric Mas has attacked and Evenepoel has responded promptly. After Evenepoel marks Mas, Joao Almeida has a go. The Portuguese rider has a small lead over an eight-strong red jersey group with 1.5km to go.
The Evenepoel group features Mas, Ayuso, Rodriguez, Hindley, O'Connor, Lopez and Pinot. They are just behind the dogged Almeida.
Miguel Angel Lopez leads the red jersey group into the final kilometre, eager to close the gap on Almeida.
Ayuso kicks at the head of the red jersey group. Evenepoel and Mas follow immediately, with Rodriguez the next man across...
Now Evenepoel takes command of the red jersey group as the road flattens out. Almeida will finish just ahead of them, but the Portuguese rider's small gain won't worry Evenepoel in the slightest.
Almeida comes in 5:02 down on Uran. Evenepoel leads the red jersey group in at 5:10 or so.
Remco Evenepoel (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) retains the red jersey, 2:01 clear of Enric Mas (Movistar).
Result
Rigoberto Uran's stage win lifts him to 9th place overall but - Roglic's abandon aside, of course - there was little change atop the standings. Evenepoel has 2:01 in hand on Mas and 4:51 on Juan Ayuso, who bounced back from his early crash to finish in the red jersey group.
We didn't see much of the action in the GC group on the final climb as the battle for stage victory reached its denouement, but Mas certainly looked to test Evenepoel.
Rigoberto Uran speaks: "It’s beautiful to win in the Vuelta. I’ve been looking for this for several years because I’d already won at the Tour and the Giro. So as a three-week rider to win here is very special. It’s not just this year that I was looking for this win, I’ve been looking for it for years, so I’m very happy and I want to thank the team and my family.
Remco Evenepoel on another day in red: “Pretty tough, it was not easy at all. Especially the run-in was really nervous and also a big road going quite steep. It looked easier on television than it was in real life.
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