Marc Soler won at the top of yet another misty mountain on the Vuelta a España, taking victory at Lagos de Covadonga. The UAE Team Emirates rider attacked as part of the day’s early break to win solo ahead of Filippo Zana (Jayco-AlUla) and Max Poole (dsm-firmenich PostNL).
It looked as though Ben O’Connor would lose his lead to Primož Roglič after he was dropped by the favourites group on the wet and misty final climb to the finish, but the Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale rider hung on to finish with five seconds to spare.
Soler has been active in the breaks all race long, and although he has managed three podiums up to now, the win remained elusive. In fact, wins have been somewhat thin on the ground for the Spaniard during his three seasons at UAE Team Emirates, as he alluded to in a very brief post-stage interview.
“I didn’t win a lot with this team, and after two years, winning here at the Vuelta is very special,” he said. His only other victory with the team is, in fact, another Vuelta win, from 2022.
It was also a day that saw Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) crash out as he descended the penultimate climb of Collada Llomena. He came down heavily on a bend with two others, sustaining deep cuts to his right knee.
The team posted on social media: “It is with a heavy heart that we can confirm Wout van Aert has abandoned the Vuelta a España during a crash on stage 16. Updates to follow.”
More to follow…
