The team fought again for a good result at the Spanish Grand Tour.
Gianmarco Garofoli, Mikel Landa, Mauri Vansevenant and Louis Vervaeke all booked a place in the mammoth 53-man group that established itself as the break of the day after another furious start to the stage in Cantabria, which the race visited during this short stage 12. As the peloton had no real interest in chasing them down, especially as their mind was more on Angliru, the infamous which will be tackled at the end of Friday’s stage.
The T-Rex Quick-Step riders were active in this group that worked well together, and by the time they all arrived at the bottom of the final climb, the lead was of almost six minutes, more than enough for the escapees to fight for the stage win without having to think of the chasers. Collada de Brenes had the potential to break the race apart, and did just that, as soon as the fireworks began four kilometers from the top.
Two riders went clear, while behind the others tried to join them or at least reduce the gap. Landa, who was in the break for the second day in a row, launched a strong attack and escaped from the fragmented chasing group, cresting the ascent in third position, but the others came back in the descent. Among those who rejoined with 20 kilometers to go was also Vervaeke, and the Belgian ended up just outside the top ten at the finish, where Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates) took the win for a handful of seconds.
“It was a very hard and fast day, but our team did a good race and tried to be present at all times in the main moves. I tried to follow the others on the final climb, but I missed a bit there and couldn’t join them. On the other hand, it was good to have Louis join together with that group, and he had a strong sprint in the final. The best thing is that we showed a great team spirit and we’ll continue to try to get a stage victory”, Mikel explained in Las Corrales de Buelna.
Photo credit: ©Dario Belingheri / Getty Images
