Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco Stage 4: Amurrio - Eibar
The fourth stage is the toughest in the race, as the riders will have no less than 7 categorized climbs. The two most relevant are the two climbs that start from the city of Eibar: Ixua and Usatza. Both share a great part of the climb. The race ends 2 kilometers after the top of Usartza, in the Santuario de Arrate, so the stage will probably be decided in its slopes.
The break of the day included dangerous riders today, like Daniel Martin (Lotto), Robaert Gesink (Rabobank), Pierre Rolland (Quickstep) and Jerome Coppel (Vacansoleil). A total of 8 riders were in the group, who had 7’ 20’’ on the peloton at the top of Kanpazar, the first climb of the day.
Pieter Weening (Quickstep) didn’t want to wait and did a bold attack in the climb to Ixua. The Dutch has to regain quite a bit of time on the first in the GC and is trying a very long attack. 1 kilometer after the start of the climb he loses 1’ 30’’ on the break and has 50 seconds on the bunch.
Pierre Rolland waited for his teammate and gave him a good relay. Weening catched the break and went through the KoM sprint 15 seconds before a group of 4 riders. Devenyns and Menchov jumped from the bunch and lost 1’ 25’’, while the peloton was 20 seconds later.
All the riders from the break had been caught before the penultimate climb, the Alto de San Miguel. Mikel Nieve (Discovery) tried to go on his own behind Weening, but he still was losing 1’ 25’’ at the top. 30 seconds behind the Spaniard there was a group of 5 riders including Hubert Dupont, Bauke Mollema and Denis Menchov. However, they weren’t too well organized to chase.
The chasing group was caught by the bunch in the flat between the last climbs, but another one emerged at the start of the climb to Usartza: Levi Leipheimer, Denis Menchov, Bauke Mollema and George Hincapie. They are losing 2’ 20’’ to Weening halfway through the climb, so some serious differences will be set at the finish. Mikel Nieve is still in between, 1’ 05’’ behind the leader.
Weening goes through the top of Usartza with 1 minute on Mikel Nieve. Meanwhile, Bauke Mollema has left his group fellows behind and crosses the banner 2’ 35’’ behind. Weening is going to give the GC a tumble after today’s stage.
Pieter Weening wins in Eibar! Tremendous stage by the Dutch, who hadn’t shown any good shape this season before yesterday yet. A successful attack from 38 kilometers is not something we usually see (not even in videogames). Weening is going to take the lead of the race comfortably with only the time trial for the others to cut the lead.
Mikel Nieve gets the second place, 57 seconds behind Weening. The local rider did everything he could but, although he reduced the distance, he couldn’t catch Weening and it will be very difficult to regain time for him in the time trial. Bauke Mollema was third 2’ 32’’ behind the winner, which is a big hit for the other Dutch chances.
The GC has been totally revamped after today’s stage. Weening is sitting comfortably in the top position, while Nieve has climbed to the second spot. Both have a nice lead ahead of the better time trialists. Bauke Mollema and Levi Leipheimer are 3rd and 4th but the 2 minutes that separate them from the lead seem like too much to regain.
Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco Stage 5: Eibar - Zalla
The penultimate stage in the Pais Vasco is probably the easiest one. That doesn’t mean that a mass sprint is guaranteed, as the route is fairly difficult. A break has many chances to succeed today, and if it doesn’t the last climb of Beci might upset the day for many sprinters.
Rob Ruijgh (Rabobank) had a miserable Vuelta al Pais Vasco so far and he tried to make that change today by filtering in the break. However, he found himself alone against the bunch as the only two riders that tried to connect with him weren’t strong enough. The Dutch seems strong as he goes through the Alto de San Cosme (81 km remaining) and has 4’ 50’’ on Geraint Thomas (Garmin) and Vasily Kiryenka (Liquigas) and 7’ 15’’ on the peloton.
The solo effort and the steady rain were too much for Ruijgh and he was eventually caught by Jure Kocjan as the Slovenian sprinted for the last intermediate of the day. The peloton is riding fast today and there are less than 100 riders in the group with still 19 kilometers and one small climb remaining.
The riders suffered both up and down the climb to Beci. The bunch was close to split into pieces in the climb and did so thanks to crashes in the descent. BMC had tough luck, as both Hincapie and Ballan crashed and lost the top 10 places. Janez Brajkovic (Discovery) had to retire due to injuries from the same crash. Let’s hope that the Slovenian chances in the Ardennes are not hampered.
A group of 7 riders emerged in front at the end of the descent, including the top 3 in the GC, Jure Kocjan and Chris Froome. They have 45’’ on the chasing group with 5 kilometers remaining.
The small group reached the last kilometers with some seconds on the chasers. Mikel Nieve was the first to sprint and Jure Kocjan soon got his wheel. The Slovenian is the best sprinter of the group by far. Greg Van Avermaet and Vincenzo Nibali are right behind.
Jure Kocjan wins in Zalla! The Slovenian gets the second win in the Pais Vasco ahead of Mikel Nieve and Bauke Mollema. The group of chasers, where the rest of the main riders of the GC where arrives 55 seconds later, what means that Levi Leipheimer’s chances of a podium are greatly reduced.
BMC was the team with the toughest luck today, as both his top 10 riders crashed in the last descent. Ballan is still their best rider in the GC, but is down to the 18th place 5’ 30’’ behind Weening. Today’s stage has cleared the outcome of the overall classification. The top riders are too far apart for changes to happen between them, so it will be down to lesser fights tomorrow.
Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco Stage 6: Zalla - Zalla (ITT)
The last stage of the Vuelta al Pais Vasco is a time trial around Zalla. The route of the time trial is the same that the riders took yesterday in the last kilometers of the stage. Although a 24 kilometers time trial could bias the race too much, the differences are big enough in the GC and, besides, it is not a time trial where the specialists will feel very comfortable. The climb to Beci has slopes up to 12%, so climber shouldn’t lose much time.
Oscar Freire (Rabobank) was supposed to do well in today’s time trial but he disappointed a little bit. He could only record the 6th time so far, 7 seconds slower than the pace setter David Millar (Sky).
Another Spaniard, Samuel Sanchez (Katusha), did much better and clocked the best time both in the intermediate point and the finish. He improved Millar’s time by a good 9 seconds. There many threatening riders still to come, but Sanchez’s time looks good.
Chris Froome (HTC) departed 11 places after Samuel Sanchez and managed to do a great time trial. He matched Sanchez’s time and only lost to the Spaniard by tenths of a second. This result will probably allow the British to jump a couple of places in the GC.
David Lopez was the best placed rider of the local team Euskaltel –Euskadi at 7th. However, with no big threats on the GC and few chances of progressing he didn’t have high hopes for the time trial. He cruised to the finish line in the 27th position, 26 seconds behind Sanchez.
Jakob Fuglsang (Radioshack) had to hold off the threat of David Lopez, but he had not much trouble doing so. He managed the time trial well to set the 12th best so far, 17 seconds behind.
Even if Denis Menchov (Katusha) didn’t have targets in the GC, he still wanted to fight for the stage. He had his teammate in the first position and could take advantage of his references. However, the Russian narrowly missed the top spot after he finished 3rd, 6 seconds behind.
Levi Leipheimer (HTC) was another of the strong favorites for the stage. However, he also missed out on the time by Sanchez. The American set the third best, 3 seconds worse than the Katusha rider.
The last of the riders who could contend for the stage victory was Bauke Mollema (Vacansoleil). However, the Dutch could only match Menchov’s time, 6 seconds slower than Sanchez. He was aiming to make Nieve nervous about his second place, but the time trial by the Spaniard would have to be awful for Mollema to climb to the second place.
Mikel Nieve (Discovery) suffered less than expected on the time trial. The two climbs of the first part surely helped him. The local rider set the 22nd best time, 20 seconds behind Sanchez to end the race comfortably in the 2nd spot of the GC.
Pieter Weening (Quickstep) didn’t have to work hard today to win the Vuelta al Pais Vasco. He easily ended ahead of Nieve by setting the 18th best 18 seconds slower than Sanchez.
Weening gave us one of the best stages of cycling in this story after he managed to win the fourth stage in the Santuario de Arrate after a great attack with 38 kilometers remaining. This result puts the Dutch again in the spotlight as one of the favorites for the Tour de France.
The week of the Ardennes starts in the Netherlands with the Amstel Gold Race. This is the first hilly race of the season, races dominated by Janez Brajkovic the last season. The Slovenian will probably be one of the favorites for all of the races. The last winner in the Cauberg was Alberto Contador in 2009, ahead of George Hincapie and Samuel Sanchez.
Favorites:
- Bjorn Leukemans (Lotto): Leukemans is not only a cobbles riders, but a good hilly classics man, as he showed by finishing 2nd in the Fleche Wallonne last year. The Belgian will be looking for revenge after he had very bad luck in the Ronde earlier this year. The Ardennes week seems like a good place for the first major victory of the Lotto rider.
- Janez Brajkovic (Discovery): Brajkovic was the dominator of the hilly classics last year, after winning the Fleche Wallonne and the GP de Quebec. He also won the Vuelta al Pais Vasco, to end the year with 8 victories and the second place in the World Tour. The route of the Amstel Gold Race fits perfectly the characteristics of Brajkovic, as the last hills should require a lot of endurance.
- Dries Devenyns (Quickstep): Devenyns is again one of the main favorites, as he was in the Vuelta al Pais Vasco. The longer classics normally suit the Belgian rider better than the stage races, so he will be looking for a strong performance on this week races. Devenyns doesn't want last year's situation to repeat, as even though he ended 5th in the World Tour rankings he didn't grab a single win.
- Simon Gerrans (Quickstep): Quickstep looks again as the strongest team around. They didn't have any trouble in the Basque Country, as Pieter Weening soon emerged as the strong favorite for the win. This time Gerrans arrives as a helper to Devenyns, but he could take over the leading role if the Belgian doesn't feel too good.
The route of the Amstel Gold Race is a loop through the region of Limburg, in the Netherlands. The profile of the stage is very hilly, although none is as demanding as the ones the riders will find next Sunday on the route to Liege. The last block of hills before the finish in the Cauberg will surely leave a small group in front that will have to fight for the final victory in the famous climb.
A group of 9 riders took the lead early in the race after the bunch had brought down a couple of earlier attacks. The group included David Millar (Sky), John Gadret (Discovery), Juan Jose Haedo (Saxo Bank), Stefano Garzelli (Liquigas) and Kenny van Hummel (Vacansoleil). Halfway through the stage they had a gap of 6' 05'' that didn't look like enough to get to the finish. Things in the peloton were now quiet after some drama when it had split in two parts earlier in the race.
The peloton started chasing early, but David Millar got to the last section of hills still ahead. He had 12 seconds on a trio of chasers: Stefano Garzelli, Igor Anton and Juan Jose Haedo. However, the gap to the bunch had shrunk to only 1' 55''. HTC and Quickstep are taking the responsibility for the chase.
Rob Ruijgh (Rabobank) leads the favorites group as they catch the last riders from the break with 18 kilometers remaining. The number of riders in the group is constantly reducing, as even some outsiders like Frank Schleck (Radioshack) are dropped.
A group of only 21 riders reaches the last 5 kilometers of the Amstel Gold Race as they go through Valkenburg. Jose Joaquin Rojas is keeping Bjorn Leukemans close to the first places of the group as we reach the final climb.
Rojas leads the way as they start the climb to the Cauberg. Behind him, the best placed are Michael Albasini, Rob Ruijgh and Janez Brajkovic.
Brajkovic progresses o the first place as the final sprint is started. Rojas is still second, but behind comes a threatening Dries Devenyns and Andy Schleck. It looks as a close final sprint.
Janez Brajkovic wins in Valkenburg! The Slovenian is the King Midas of the hilly classics and he only has to win the Liege - Bastogne - Liege to complete the trio of the Ardennes. Behind him arrived the two riders from Quickstep that aimed to win here: Dries Devenyns and Simon Gerrans. Meanwhile, Rojas dropped back to fourth and Andy Schleck to fifth.
If Brajkovic can prove to be as strong in the finishes as he has shown here he will be the rider to follow in the two coming races. The finish in Huy especially fits him, and Brajokvic already won there last year.
La Fleche Wallonne is the second race in the week of the Ardennes. It is race on the Wednesday between the Amstel Gold Race and the Liege - Bastogne - Liege. Its debut on the story was last year, when Janez Brajkovic won the race on the last climb to the Mur de Huy. Brajkovic is again expected to do well, as he comes from winning the Amstel Gold Race last Sunday but he has missed out on my top 4 favorites list this time. Two Belgians completed the podium last year: Bjorn Leukemans and Dries Devenyns, so the local crowd will be eager to see some of the locals make a good race today.
Favorites:
- Bjorn Leukemans (Lotto): Leukemans is again one of the favorites to win a classic. However, the Lotto rider keeps missing out due to lack of strength or bad luck. Apparently, his lack of sprinting speed is a liability for him even in small groups so today's very though finish should help him increase his chances. However, he should try a more attacking style to further reduce the group he travels in.
- Davide Rebellin (Movistar): The Italian had stated that he meant Amstel Gold Race to be a preparation for the later hilly classics in the Ardennes. Even though, he managed to stick with the best and arrived in the 10th place only 25 seconds later than the winner. Today's race suits him well, as he is one of the best uphill finishers of the peloton, as he showed in his win at the top of Willunga Hill.
- Jure Kocjan (HTC): Jure Kocjan has been one of the revelations of the season. The other Slovenian accumulates 3 wins this season, the same as Rebellin. This is the race of the Ardennes that fits him best, as he will probably be able to survive in the front group until the last climb to Huy. There he will have to show his uphill finish abilities.
- Simon Gerrans (Quickstep): I have singled out Simon Gerrans instead of Dries Devenyns because the Australian is a better uphill finisher than the Belgian. Both of them will probably be contenders for the win and will have Pieter Weening's support as they had in Amstel Gold Race, where they finished 2nd and 3rd.
The Mur de Huy takes the absolute leading role in the Fleche Wallonne. It is climbed 3 times and the finish is at the top of it. The route favor massively the uphill finishers, as most of the times a raher big group reaches the base of the last hill.
A very strong break took the lead after some drama in the bunch as the wind broke it in pieces. The group of 6 riders was formed by Jure Kocjan (HTC), Hubert Dupont (Saxo Bank), Cadel Evans (Discovery), Bart de Clerq (Lampre), Rob Ruijgh (Rabobank) and Lloyd Mondory (Liquigas). They have 3' 10'' on the bunch in the second climb to Huy, but that is still 101 kilometers from the finish.
The wind again appeared and again broke the bunch into pieces. The Lotto and Discovery riders seemed to be the most aware of the situation and coped the first group. As the riders entered the last 50 kilometers the situation was as follows: the leading break was still in front. 45 seconds later came the chasing group of around 40 riders (in the picture), including Janez Brajkovic (Discovery), Bjorn Leukemans (Lotto), Dries Devenyns (Quickstep). The main bunch was 2' 40'' behind the leaders. Davide Rebellin (Movistar), Bauke Mollema (Vacansoleil), Simon Gerrans (Quickstep) and Andy Schleck (HTC) had been caught unaware.
The break was finally caught by the chasers in the Cote de Bohissan, around 32 kilometers from the finish. The bunch loss has increased and gone over the 3 minutes mark by now, so the win seems to be in the first group.
The unexpected happened in the next 15 kilometers. No team wanted to take responsibility for keeping a pace in the front group and that slow pace let the riders in the back peloton to rejoin. That means that all of the favorites are again together as they go through the 15 kilometers mark.
Quickstep and Discovery are the best placed teams as the riders go into the last 4 kilometers of the race. No brave rider tried a late attack, so everything is going to be settled by the uphill sprint towards the Mur de Huy.
Mikel Nieve (Discovery) leads the pack as they go into the last kilometer. Many Quickstep riders are trailing, as Simon Gerrans is leading Pieter Weening and Dries Devenyns in the final punch.
Dries Devenyns wins in Huy! The Belgian finally gets another win after a perfectly set up finish by his entire team. Devenyns managed to deny another Belgian, as Bjorn Leukemans took the second place in the stage. This is getting usual for Leukemans, who has lots of top 10 places in classics but no wins. The third spot of the podium was again for Simon Gerrans.
Janez Brajkovic couldn't do much this time against better uphill finishers than him. However, the Slovenian still took the 4th place at the finish ahead of his teammate Mikel Nieve.
The monument of the Ardennes closes the week in the Netherlands and Belgium. We have seen wins by Janez Brajkovic and Dries Devenyns, while Simon Gerrans has been in the podium in the two previous classics. Therefore, any of them could be named "King of the Ardennes" if they perform well today. The Belgian is the only winner to date in Liege in the story, so it will be very interesting to see if Devenyns meets his biggest goal of the year and retains the title.
Favorites:
- Bjorn Leukemans (Lotto): The usual suspect is again on the top of the list of favorites. Leukemans keeps looking for his win and showed in Huy that he can contend for it. He was short of the win by a handful of meters, so keep an eye on him as Liege - Bastogne - Liege suits him better.
- Davide Rebellin (Movistar): The Italian didn't have the best of his days in the Fleche Wallonne, as he got surprised by the wind and had to fight much of the race to come back into the fisrt peloton. He will be looking for revenge in Liege, but the length of the route will probably not favor him as much as some of his rivals.
- Janez Brajkovic (Discovery): Janez is one of those riders that almost never fails under pressure and he has shown it in the past couple of years. The Slovenian will want to still be considered the best hills rider, and where best to make the statement than in the Liege - Bastogne - Liege. If we add the great support that Brajkovic will enjoy, this can only end with him in the top positions.
- Dries Devenyns (Quickstep): Quickstep will again be able to play two cards, as Simon Gerrans is closing in Devenyns quality for this kind of races. We have chosen the Belgian this time as his morale should be over the roof after his win in Huy last Wednesday. He is also the defending champion here, so that could also give him an edge.
