At Saturday dawned in Spain, Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) looked on track to capture another stage win in the 2023 Vuelta a Espana, but at the end of the day, it was Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious) who ultimately had the legs after a gruelling day of racing in the Sierra de Guadarrama. This is Poels second stage win in the Vuelta, and the stage win comes just two months after a win in the Tour de France as well.
All of the GC contenders fought it out on the Alto de San Lorenzo de El Escorial, the final significant climb of the race, but Sep Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) was able to control his rivals to all but seal the overall victory on the eve of the final stage in Madrid. He is set to be the first winner of a Grand Tour from the USA since Chris Horner won here in 2013.
With more than 4,000m of elevation and ten categorized climbs in the Sierra de Guadarrama over 207.8km of racing on tap today, it was a final chance for a GC contender to make waves.
An Impressive Breakaway
Attackers were inspired from the start and a big battle ensued on the first ascent of the day, Collado del Portazgo (summit at km 12.8). Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) lead the way to the summit ahead of Evenepoel and 29 more attackers, including former stage winners like Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious), Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe), Andreas Kron (Lotto Dstny), Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EasyPost), Rui Costa (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) and Romain Bardet (DSM-Firmenich).
Dylan van Baarle and Robert Gesink (Jumbo-Visma) set the pace in the bunch, as they have for most of the race. The attackers worked well together and were 6 minutes ahead of the pelotoo going into the last 100 kilometres.
Evenepoel’s Teammates Control
The breakaway riders started attacking each other on the second ascent of the Alto de Santa Maria, with a bit more than 70 kilometres to go. But with three teammates at the front (Cattaneo, Knox and Vervaeke), Evenepoel controlled the situation towards the last two ascents of the day, inside the last 35 kilometres. Meanwhile, the gap to the bunch increased to over 10 minutes.
On the final and steepest ascent of the day, the Alto de San Lorenzo de El Escorial (4.6km at 6.6%), Wout Poels put the hammer down. The Dutch rider lead the way to the summit, followed by Evenepoel, Soler, Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto Dstny) and Pelayo Sanchez (Burgos-BH).
Poels and Kuss celebrate
After a speedy downhill, the five of them worked together on the flat. Poels surprised his rivals as he launched the sprint from far away. Evenepoel almost got back to him but the Dutch climber resisted the Belgian star on the line.
In the GC group, Enric Mas (Movistar) and Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) attacked. Primoz Roglic controlled for Jumbo-Visma. The Slovenian star, a 3-time winner of La Vuelta, crossed the line alongside Jonas Vingegaard and Sepp Kuss as the trio were read to celebrate their accomplishments ahead of the final stage in Madrid.
Evenepoel Close to 4th Win
Remco Evenepoel was separated by mere centimeters from another victory on the penultimate day of the season’s final Grand Tour. He entered the final kilometer in a good position, but Poels surprised everyone by opening his sprint with around 400 meters to go.
“It was a hard stage, but we did our best. Mattia, James and Louis were amazing, pulling the whole stage and working tirelessly for me. I felt good and was confident in my sprint going in the closing kilometer of the stage, but Poels surprised us all by starting his sprint from afar, while I reacted a bit too late. I tried to make up ground, but despite having the speed, I ran out of road. Despite everything, I don’t have any regrets. Now I’m looking forward to Madrid and to one last ride with the boys here”, said Remco, who moved up to 12th on the general classification after this penultimate stage.
Show of Unity for Jumbo-Visma
In the group of favourites, the top three in the general classification, made up of the Jumbo-Visma trio, were not attacked.
“It will take a while for everything to sink in”, the 28-year-old American continued. “It’s an incredible feeling. It was a huge relief to cross the line here. I knew it was possible to finish this, but you have to get through all the stages well. I suffered a lot, but I survived every time. This Tour of Spain has been an unexpected success for me. When I became a cyclist, I did it for the love of the sport. Now, I am close to winning a grand tour. It is still too difficult to express my feelings. I am grateful for this experience.”
Stage 20 Brief Results:
- Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious) @ 4h 59’29”
- Remco Evenepoel (Soudal Quick-Step) s.t.
- Pelayo Sanchez Mayo (Burgos – BH) s.t.
- Lennert van Eetvelt (Lotto Dstny) s.t.
- Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) @ 4″
General Classification After Stage 20:
Sepp Kuss (Team Jumbo Visma) @ 74h 23’42”
Jonas Vingegaard (Team Jumbo Visma) @ 17″
Primoz Roglic (Team Jumbo Visma) @ 1’08”
Juan Ayoso (UAE Team Emirates) @ 3’44”
Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) @ 4’03”
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