Hansen Take Vuelta Stage 19

12 September 2014 04:50

Lotto Belisol's Adam Hansen has won the 19th stage of Vuelta a España.

A 180km stage with only two climbs from Salvaterra do Mino to Cangos do Morazzo saw Laurent Mangel (FDJ.fr), Pim Ligthart (Lotto Belisol) and Wouter Poels (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) break after 25kms.

They were 3.15 ahead and then 3.22 some eighty kilometres into the stage.

Poels took the points on the Category 2 Monte da Grova as the gap dropped to 2.15 on the descent.

With 63kms left, Lighthart beat Poels in the intermediate sprint and twenty two kilometres later, the trio had seen their lead reduced to 1.26 on a cloudy day which turned to rain.

Movistar were leading the peloton and they were able to pull back another forty five seconds.

Lutsenko of Astana jumped off the front of the peloton two kilometres after the three breakers had their time on the front ended with 22 kilometres to go.

A crash took down a Sky rider in Dario Cataldo. who might have hit a tree as Sammy Sanchez went away on the descent at 65km/h after Alexey Lutsenko.

Sanchez was brought back to the peloton who caught Lutsenko with just under seven killometres left.

John Degenkolb looking for his fifth stage win in this race was amongst the contenders at the front as Adam Hansen launched another attack.

It was an attack which stuck and the Lotto rider in his tenth consecutive Grand Tour has a fourteen second lead going towards the flam rouge.

Hansen sailed under that marker and headed for the finish line and took the win in 4.21.58 with Degenkolb, the points leader in second. Third was Pozzato, followed by Martinez, Matthews, Soupe, Martens, Stuyven, Hardy and Caruso.

Alberto Contador continues to lead the race with a lead of 1.19.

Source: DSG