Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) took a crucial, but not decisive, step forward toward the overall victory in the Vuelta a Espaņa as he fended off his rivals with a solid time trial performance at Torrelavega. Thirteenth on the stage, Yates gained seven seconds on Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) to slightly extend his overall lead, although Steven Kruijswijk (LottoNL-Jumbo) moved into third overall, 51 seconds back. However, he has now pushed two more of his most dangerous rivals on the climbs, Nairo Quintana (Movistar) and Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana Pro Team), from 33 and 43 seconds, respectively, to well beyond the minute barrier.ADVERTISEMENT For Yates, having managed to defend himself so successfully in the mountains, this was perhaps the most crucial stage of the third week. But the Briton remains cautious. `I`m happy with my performance,` Yates said as he took questions from the press seated next to stage winner Rohan Dennis (BMC Racing Team). `I know I extended my lead. It was a good ride. `I took things pretty conservatively in the opening part of the time trial and then gave it full gas in what was left in the final,` he said. `I had a good day, but there`s not much else to say. I`m very wary of the coming stages, particularly the mountain stages in Andorra and the Basque Country. It`s still going to be difficult.`
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