Movistar's Nairo Quintana has won the tenth stage of the 93rd Vuelta a Espana.
There was yet another new leader in the race with David De La Cruz of Etixx Quick Step now in the red jersey going into this 188.7km from Lugones and finishing on the Hors Category climb of the Lagos de Covadonga.
No-one was able to establish a break for the opening sixty kilometres. There were a few attacks but nothing was able to stick but a group of sixteen in Ben Hermans (BMC), Victor Campenaerts and Robert Gesink (LottoNL-Jumbo), Dmitriy Gruzdev (Astana), Tobias Ludvigsson (Giant-Alpecin), Egor Silin (Katusha), Louis Vervaecke (Lotto Soudal), Moreno Moser, Pierre Rolland and Joe Dombrowski (Cannondale-Drapac), Vegard Stake Laengen (IAM), Luis Angel Mate (Cofidis), Jose Goncalves (Caja Rural), Fabio Felline (Trek-Segafredo), Jan Bakelants (AG2R), and Omar Fraile (Dimension Data managed to get two minutes clear.
Omar Fraile took the climb with 41.5km left before he was reeled in with Mate after Joe Dombrowski had crashed on the descent.
Then it was onto the Lagos de Covadonga. This was the 20th time this arduous climb had been used in the race and it was Robert Gesink who lead the break onto the climb with it's 7.2% average gradients, with a lead of 2.40.
Gesink stayed clear but Quintana, Contador and Valverde who were in a small group were after him, having dropped the race leader and Nario Quintana put in a massive push to get after Gesink who was only thirty five seconds ahead of Quintana with just over three kilometres to go.
The Movistar rider caught up to Gesink with 2.6kms left and then shot past him as Chris Froome and Alejandro Valverde made it up to Contador.
Nairo Quintana put his foot down and he was first over the line on top of the Lagos de Covadonga in a time of 4.50.31, some 24 seconds ahead of Robert Gesink and twenty five seconds ahead of Chris Froome.
The win for the Colombian means that he leads the race from his team mate Valverde by 57 seconds with Chris Froome in third at 58 seconds.
"What I felt today gives me more confidence to keep fighting and defending this jersey," said Quintana. "I had very good sensations, my team worked really well, and I was motivated to win the stage. I’ve always dreamt of winning here and today I’ve managed to do it.
"[On the final climb] I felt good. I saw that there weren’t many of us left – the rhythm, set for us by Ruben Fernandez was really good. Then the attacks came and I went with Alberto."
Source: DSG
