In 2017, a semi-unknown Julian Alaphilippe He raised his arms in Xorret de Catí. It was the season when he was seen as an important runner and even dubbed ‘the new Valverde’. And although he is not at his best now after winning two world championships (2020 and 2021), He will always have a special affection for this Alicante summit, to which La Vuelta returns today. And with a slightly mixed overall result, with a priori unexpected names in the top spots after the spectacular day at Javalambre. However, the big theoretical contenders for ultimate victory are just a breath away. A 19-second area includes Evenepoel, Enric Mas, Vingegaard, Roglic and Ayuso. And that the Belgian is ninth.
In front of them are riders like Landa, Kuss, Soler… who have to save about two minutes but remain in front for almost the entire Vuelta. On this eighth stage, in addition to the mountainous difficulty, there is another factor that you already experienced at the beginning of Barcelona: the rain. With the heat settling in Valencia on Friday, a radical change is expected over the weekend and the forecast is not encouraging. Between Denia and Xorret de Catí, 165 km will be covered, with a total of five climbs, including the final climb… However, the result will not be high as there will be a small relegation after the coronation.
The ports that are boarded during the day (Vall d’Ebo, Tollos, Benifallim, Carrasqueta…) They are well known to a large part of the peloton as these are areas where they normally do their winter preparations and also their usual testing at this time of year. A land best known to Juan Ayuso, not far from Jávea, his city. “These are roads I used to drive on,” said the UAE man yesterday, leaving Javalambre satisfied.
He felt Roglic and Vingegaard could only lead the Alicante man by a seven second margin, despite taking the lead and gaining an advantage. At the top of the standings is the precocious Frenchman Lenny Martínez, just 20 years old, the youngest leader in the entire history of the race. Even if it’s complicated today, he will fight to defend the precious garment. His lead over Kuss is just eight seconds and one of the climbs, Carrasqueta, will get a bonus on his stop. The day is good for the break, as was the case in 2017, and regulars in situations like De Gendt yesterday stressed that they marked the day in red. Xorret de Catí is barely 4 km uphill, but with an average of 11.4%… and ramps that reach up to 22%. All the hardness compressed, with a subsequent descent into the lowered technology, with the favorites being on the alert in the foreseeable rain.
|
after cyclist |
equipment | Time |
|---|---|---|
1
 |
SOQ | 8:43:11 |
2
 |
MOV | +00:05 |
3
 |
GFC | +00:11 |
4
 |
TJV | +00:31 |
5
 |
BOH | +00:33 |
|
6
|
BOH | +00:33 |
|
7
|
DSM | +00:35 |
8th
 |
TBV | +00:35 |
9
 |
TJV | +00:37 |
10
 |
TJV | +00:37 |
