UAE Team Emirates’ Adam Yates rode to victory and a substantial jump up the general classification on stage 9 of the Vuelta a España, after attacking the breakaway almost 60km out from the finish in Granada.
Second place went to Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) after a spirited effort to bridge to the break and take time on GC.
The GC riders sprinted it out for third place, with red jersey Ben O’Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) winning the kick for the line to hold onto his lead for another day.
After losing leader João Almeida to COVID-19 ahead of the stage, a determined UAE Team Emirates placed three riders in the day’s 26-man early breakaway, setting up Yates’ solo attack on the second of a trio of finishing climbs on a tough stage in southern Spain.
Despite some attempts, namely from Enric Mas (Movistar), the GC battle never quite materialised behind, as all the favourites regrouped on the flat run-in to the finish and crossed the line on the same time, only ceding time to Yates and Carapaz.
More to follow…