2021 Vuelta a Espana: Stage 15 Results

Rafal Majka (UAE Team Emirates) took a winning ride under the sun in the 15th stage of the 2021 Vuelta a Espana.

The Polish climber successfully completed a solitary escape that started 90 km from the finish line of the stage between Navalmoral de la Mata to El Barraco (197.5 km with two 1st category GPM, a 2nd category GPM and a 3rd category GPM).

Majka attacked and went clear in the company of Fabio Aru (Team Qhubeka NextHash), before escaping solo, managing his energy and his resistance to the heat in the best possible way to be able to keep the main chasers at a distance, with the nearest being Steven Kruijswijk (Jumbo- Visma), who reached the finish line 1m27 ” min behind.

Good performance also for David De La Cruz: the Spaniard completed the race in the group of the main men of the classification, taking home 9th place of the day (+ 2’57 “from the winner) and maintaining the 15th position in the general classification (+ 7’11 “from the leader Eiking).

Majka: “To go in the break, the important thing is to have good legs but, sometimes, these are not always enough to stay away. Today I tried from the start to attack, with the fixed idea of ​​winning the stage in mind, in order to dedicate the success to my father, my two children and UAE Team Emirates, a really great team.

“I am very happy, it is nice to be able to celebrate after a bad start to the season, and to be able to dedicate it to my dad who passed away just 3 months ago”.

Odd Christian Eiking Holds Red

On the eve of the second rest day, Odd Christian Eiking stays leader of the race, 54 seconds ahead of Guillaume Martin. Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert will have an eighth day in red this Tuesday, on the occasion of a transition stage towards Cantabria.

“I want to thank the whole team, because their fantastic racing enabled me to keep the red jersey until the end of the second week of the Vuelta,” said the race leader. “Without the team, I would not have been able to stay in this position at the end of such a demanding stage. We knew the intrinsic value of our collective, and for the first time we had the possibility to show it on this level by controlling a delicate day from the first to the last kilometer. At the end, I only had to watch my main competitors and reach the finish at the end of the downhill. I’m very proud to lead the Tour of Spain after two weeks and I want to thank all people who support us!”

Rest Day Monday

The Vuelta now heads into the second rest day before beginning the final week with the 16th stage, 180 km from Laredo to Santa Cruz de Bezana on a path with a choppy elevation profile.

2021 Vuelta a Espana: Stage 15 Brief Results

1. Rafal Majka (UAE Team Emirates) 4h51’36 “
2. Steven Kruiijswijk (Jumbo-Visma) + 1’27 ”
3. Chris Hamilton (Team DSM) + 2’19 ”

General Classification after Stage 15

1. Christian Odd Eiking (Intermarché-Wanty) 59h57’50 ”
2. Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) +54 ”
3. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) + 1’36 ”