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EFE · Road Competition · 10/21/2020
Marc Soler gave Movistar a great victory alone in the land of his headquarters thanks to a getaway down the San Miguel de Aralar descent that allowed him to reach the Lekunberri goal alone, where the Slovenian Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) I kept the red of leader.
Soler (Vilanova i la Geltr, 26 years old) knew the terrain, was a key part of Movistar’s strategy, motivated in his homeland and finished off his first victory in a big one. He finished off a great Movistar day alone with glory, with time to celebrate his success after the 151-kilometer stage between Pamplona and Lekunberri, in the heart of the Comunidad Foral.
Marc Soler stood out from the group of favorites in the descent of Aralar. He opened the gap and crossed the line 19 seconds ahead of Roglic, Dan Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation), Esteban Chaves (Mitchelton-Scott), Richard Carapaz (Ineos), Alejandro Valverde and Enric Mas (both from Movistar).
Roglic took the sprint of the pursuers, bonus 6 seconds and retained `the red with an income of 9 seconds over Dan Martin and 11 compared to Ecuadorian Richard Carapaz.
EXPLOSIVE EXIT, WELLENS GETS DAMAGED ON THE LEAK
The day’s break was mounted after 40 kilometers. The wind was blowing, but on the way to Alto de Guirguillano (3 Cat.) The attempts led to a 5-man adventure promoted by Belgian Tim Wellens (Lotto-Soudal), who was joined by Spaniards Alex Aranburu (Astana) and Gonzalo Serrano (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA).
The Jumbo-Visma in Tour de France mode picked up the chase pace within a margin that never exceeded 5 minutes late. Nothing worrisome for Roglic, since the best classified in the general among the advancement was the French Bruno Armirail (Groupama-FDJ), almost 6 minutes away.
Repeating the play of the first port, Tim Wellens attacked again, unavailable for discouragement. The Belgian climbed Urbasa (3 Cat. With 6.8 km at 5.7%) alone and crossed the top with more than a minute with the pursuers and almost 6 over the leader’s group.
MOVISTAR CONTROLLER MAKES THE SELECTION
Another stage emerged from the roof of Urbasa. While Wellens pursued his dream with no options, Movistar attacked the block on the descent trying to dynamite the race. Finally there was no gap, but the whiplash forced the Jumbo and Ineos de Carapaz to be attentive, already to the finish line.
The hot spot of the Navarrese day was the climb to San Miguel de Aralar, a first of almost 10 kilometers at 7.9 percent with ramps of 15 on a narrow road that was climbed from Uharte Arakil by the concrete track.
A serious effort of more than 25 minutes to examine again the men of the general classification, who began the climb with stiff ears in a platoon reduced by Movistar to 25 men, among them Luis Len Snchez (Astana), the first to try .
Failed jump of the champion of Spain. Marc Soler was in charge of remembering that the baton was in the hands of Movistar, in a dominating plan, inspired by well-known roads. The Catalan stopped Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) and Carapaz before attacking in the first person on the descent, leaving Valverde and Mas in the leader’s group.
SOLER UNSTOPPABLE IS PREMIERE IN A GREAT
Until the finish line of Lekunberri 16 km, a difficult descent, one of those that requires pedaling, since the inertia of the unevenness is not enough. Soler threw himself into the open grave, determined to finish the job for Movistar, combative from Urbasa to achieve something great.
With a handful of 20 seconds holding the 2018 Paris-Nice winner to the finish, he went straight for his first victory on a big lap. No one could stop it. Finally an award for the Catalan, who could not go to the Giro to strengthen the squad on the Tour.
Now in La Vuelta he has just shown that the team can continue to trust him to carry the stripes in certain races. Promised since he won the Tour del Porvenir in 2015 and winner of the Paris-Nice in 2018, Soler still has a pending account. The victory at Lekunberri will give him the morale and confidence he lacks.
The Vuelta a Espaa will continue this Thursday with the dispute of its third stage, of 166.1 kilometers, starting in the Navarran town of Lodosa and arriving at the Black Lagoon of Vinuesa (Soria).
Classifications [Clasificaciones completas]
Stage classification:
1. MARC SOLER (ESP / MOVISTAR) at 3:47:04
2. Primoz Roglic (SLO / Jumbo-Visma) at 0:19
3. Daniel Martin (IRL / Israel Start-Up Nation) at 0:19
4. Richard Carapaz (ECU / Ineos) at 0:19
5. ALEJANDRO VALVERDE (ESP / MOVISTAR) at 0:19
6. ENRIC MAS (ESP / MOVISTAR) at 0:19
7. Esteban Chaves (COL / Mitchelton-Scott) at 0:19
8. Hugh Carthy (GBR / Education First) at 0:19
9. Sepp Kuss (USA / Jumbo-Visma) at 0:19
10. George Bennett (NZL / Jumbo-Visma) at 0:19
General classification:
1. Primoz Roglic (SLO / Jumbo-Visma) – 8:09:41
2. Daniel Martin (IRL / Israel Start-Up Nation) at 0:09
3. Richard Carapaz (ECU / Ineos) at 0:11
4. Esteban Chaves (COL / Mitchelton-Scott) at 0:17
5. ENRIC MAS (ESP / MOVISTAR) at 0:17
6. Hugh Carthy (GBR / Education First) at 0:20
7. Sepp Kuss (USA / Jumbo-Visma) at 0:26
8. George Bennett (NZL / Jumbo-Visma) at 0:56
9. Felix Grobschartner (AUT / Bora-Hansgrohe) at 0:59
10. MARC SOLER (ESP / MOVISTAR) at 1:04
Next stage, 3: Lodosa – Laguna Negra de Vinuesa / 166.1 Km.
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