Even with an overnight margin of one minute and 38 seconds, Simon Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) was never confident of sealing the Vuelta a Espaņa title on the final meaningful day of racing in Andorra. How could he be, after what had happened at the Giro d`Italia? `Yesterday I had a good ride but I truly didn`t believe I could pull it off,` he revealed as he sat down for the Vuelta winner`s press conference, which traditionally takes place the day before the ceremonial final stage into Madrid. `I was nervous at the beginning because you just never know, on a stage like today, what could happen.`ADVERTISEMENT Indeed, despite Yates` seeming superiority, a stage that crammed six climbs into 97 kilometres at the very end of a Grand Tour always had the potential for a late plot twist. But the 26-year-old, showing that attack is his best form of defense for a second day in a row, only extended his lead as Alejandro Valverde fell away on the final climb and the drama was reduced to the battle for the minor podium positions. `It was a ferocious day, from the very beginning,` Yates said, `but my team were fantastic. I had support until the very last moment with Adam. At that point I was more confident of keeping the jersey. It`s just a really unbelievable day.` Yates will have his day in the sun when the Vuelta finishes in Madrid on Sunday, but there`s a sense that this victory is only the start. A key question on everyone`s minds was what comes next. Would head for the Tour de France next year as one of the big favourites, or would he replicate the Giro-Vuelta approach? Lessons learned Yates` rise
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
|
