Vuelta a Espana: Astana win team time trial

Astana put in a thoroughly dominant and mistake-free ride to win the opening team time trial at the Vuelta a Espana. The men in black and blue finished the 13.4km course in a time of 14:51 to win ahead of Deceuninck-QuickStep and Team Sunweb. The win put Miguel Angel Lopez in the first leader’s jersey of this year’s race after he crossed the line ahead of his teammates.

Deceuninck-QuickStep pushed Astana all the way and may have edged the win had it not been for a poorly parked Jumbo-Visma car. The Belgian team were forced to check their line and then lost two riders on the final corner as they looked to keep their rhythm. They crossed the line just two seconds down on Astana.

Jumbo-Visma’s terrible day didn’t stop there. The Dutch team were the favourites to win the stage and they were in contention until a crash took down several of their squad – including pre-race favourite Primoz Roglic – just after the intermediate check. Roglic battled through despite visible cuts on his left side but his GC chances were dealt a significant blow with close to 50 seconds lost to Lopez.

Astana came into the Vuelta a Espana with a squad built around Lopez but they had to wait until the sun began to set in Spain before their time trial began. Before then, Dimension Data and a strong-looking EF Education First had taken control of the race with the American team looking particularly impressive. They set a time of 14:58 and were the first squad to dip under fifteen minutes in a throwback to their last Grand Tour TTT win at the Giro in 2012.

However, when Astana began on the route it was clear that the team containing Lopez, Fuglsang and Luis Leon Sanchez were on a mission. While Sunweb had already nudged EF-Education First off the top stop, Astana were setting a blistering pace through the first time check. They were fastest by six seconds, ahead of Groupama-FDJ at the intermediate check and continued to dominate to the line.

Jumbo-Visma’s day was a catalogue of errors. They lost Sepp Kuss early on to a mechanical but dragged themselves back into contention with a respectable time in the first check. Then, on a slight rise and left-hand corner, they rode through a short wet patch. One rider then rode onto the white line and at that point seemed to lose control. When he tumbled he took several riders down with him, including Roglic. The Dutch squad, with Tony Martin at the helm, mounted a comeback as they began to regroup but the damage was already done by the time they eventually crossed the line in 18th place.

In July, Jumbo-Visma were the toast of the TTT but a wet patch on the road and a short lapse in concentration offered a timely reminder of how quickly the sport can change.

By the time Astana reached the hot seat, only Movistar and Deceuninck-QuickStep stood in the way as realistic challengers. The Spanish team were already 13 seconds down at the first check and would eventually finish seventh on the stage but Deceuninck – without ever looking spectacular – remained in contention and would have certainly finished closer or even won the stage had they not been hampered towards the end by a Jumbo-Visma car that had stopped in the road to aid a rider. Still, that’s cycling, and that’s the Vuelta. Everything can change in the blink of an eye and there’s still almost three weeks to go.

Full Results

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Teams
Pos.Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Astana Pro Team0:14:51
2Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:02
3Team Sunweb0:00:05
4EF Education First0:00:07
5Bora-Hansgrohe0:00:13
6CCC Team0:00:15
7Movistar Team0:00:16
8Groupama-FDJRow 7 - Cell 2
9Mitchelton-Scott0:00:18
10Lotto Soudal0:00:19
11Team Ineos0:00:25
12Bahrain-Merida0:00:26
13Katusha-Alpecin0:00:33
14Dimension Data0:00:34
15Trek-Segafredo0:00:35
16Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:37
17AG2R La MondialeRow 16 - Cell 2
18Team Jumbo-Visma0:00:40
19Cofidis Solutions Credits0:00:43
20Euskadi Basque Country0:00:46
21UAE Team Emirates0:01:07
22Burgos-BH0:01:22
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General Classification
Pos.Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Miguel Angel Lopez (Col) Astana Pro Team0:14:51
2Dario Cataldo (Ita) Astana Pro TeamRow 1 - Cell 2
3Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro TeamRow 2 - Cell 2
4Ion Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Astana Pro TeamRow 3 - Cell 2
5Luis León Sanchez (Spa) Astana Pro TeamRow 4 - Cell 2
6Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Astana Pro TeamRow 5 - Cell 2
7Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:02
8Fabio Jakobsen (Ned) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 7 - Cell 2
9Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 8 - Cell 2
10Maximiliano Ariel Richeze (Arg) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 9 - Cell 2
11James Knox (GBr) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 10 - Cell 2
12Rémi Cavagna (Fra) Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:03
13Maximilian Walscheid (Ger) Team Sunweb0:00:05
14Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Team SunwebRow 13 - Cell 2
15Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team SunwebRow 14 - Cell 2
16Casper Pedersen (Den) Team SunwebRow 15 - Cell 2
17Rob Power (Aus) Team Sunweb0:00:06
18Tejay Van Garderen (USA) EF Education First0:00:07
19Hugh John Carthy (GBr) EF Education FirstRow 18 - Cell 2
20Rigoberto Uran (Col) EF Education FirstRow 19 - Cell 2
21Sergio Andres Higuita Garcia (Col) Equipo EuskadiRow 20 - Cell 2
22Daniel Martinez (Col) EF Education FirstRow 21 - Cell 2
23Lawson Craddock (USA) EF Education FirstRow 22 - Cell 2
24Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe0:00:13
25Gregor Mühlberger (Aut) Bora-HansgroheRow 24 - Cell 2
26Jean-Pierre Drucker (Lux) Bora-HansgroheRow 25 - Cell 2
27Davide Formolo (Ita) Bora-HansgroheRow 26 - Cell 2
28Rafal Majka (Pol) Bora-HansgroheRow 27 - Cell 2
29Felix Großschartner (Aut) Bora-HansgroheRow 28 - Cell 2
30Nathan Van Hooydonck (Bel) CCC Team0:00:15
31Victor De La Parte (Spa) CCC TeamRow 30 - Cell 2
32Patrick Bevin (NZl) CCC TeamRow 31 - Cell 2
33Will Barta (USA) CCC TeamRow 32 - Cell 2
34Szymon Sajnok (Pol) CCC TeamRow 33 - Cell 2
35Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team0:00:16
36Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 35 - Cell 2
37Nelson Oliveira (Por) Movistar TeamRow 36 - Cell 2
38Imanol Erviti (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 37 - Cell 2
39Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar TeamRow 38 - Cell 2
40Benjamin Thomas (Fra) Groupama-FDJRow 39 - Cell 2
41Romain Seigle (Fra) Groupama-FDJRow 40 - Cell 2
42Tobias Ludvigsson (Swe) Groupama-FDJRow 41 - Cell 2
43Kilian Frankiny (Swi) Groupama-FDJRow 42 - Cell 2
44Tim Declercq (Bel) Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:18
45Eros Capecchi (Ita) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 44 - Cell 2
46Damien Howson (Aus) Mitchelton-ScottRow 45 - Cell 2
47Nicholas Schultz (Aus) Mitchelton-ScottRow 46 - Cell 2
48Esteban Chaves (Col) Mitchelton-ScottRow 47 - Cell 2
49Tsgabu Grmay (Eth) Mitchelton-ScottRow 48 - Cell 2
50Dion Smith (NZl) Mitchelton-ScottRow 49 - Cell 2
51Luka Mezgec (Slo) Mitchelton-ScottRow 50 - Cell 2
52Mikel Nieve (Spa) Mitchelton-ScottRow 51 - Cell 2
53Tomasz Marczynski (Pol) Lotto Soudal0:00:19
54Jelle Wallays (Bel) Lotto SoudalRow 53 - Cell 2
55Tosh Van Der Sande (Bel) Lotto SoudalRow 54 - Cell 2
56Brian van Goethem (Ned) Lotto SoudalRow 55 - Cell 2
57Harm Vanhoucke (Bel) Lotto Soudal0:00:20
58José Rojas (Spa) Movistar Team0:00:23
59Omar Fraile (Spa) Astana Pro Team0:00:24
60David de la Cruz (Spa) Team Ineos0:00:25
61Owain Doull (GBr) Team IneosRow 60 - Cell 2
62Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBr) Team IneosRow 61 - Cell 2
63Salvatore Puccio (Ita) Team IneosRow 62 - Cell 2
64Wout Poels (Ned) Team IneosRow 63 - Cell 2
65Mark Padun (Ukr) Bahrain-Merida0:00:26
66Hermann Pernsteiner (Aut) Bahrain-MeridaRow 65 - Cell 2
67Heinrich Haussler (Aus) Bahrain-MeridaRow 66 - Cell 2
68Dylan Teuns (Bel) Bahrain-MeridaRow 67 - Cell 2
69Matteo Fabbro (Ita) Katusha-Alpecin0:00:33
70Steff Cras (Bel) Katusha-AlpecinRow 69 - Cell 2
71Daniel Navarro Garcia (Spa) Katusha-AlpecinRow 70 - Cell 2
72Ruben Guerreiro (Por) Katusha-AlpecinRow 71 - Cell 2
73Viacheslav Kuznetsov (Rus) Katusha-AlpecinRow 72 - Cell 2
74Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier (Eri) Dimension Data0:00:34
75Ben O'Connor (Aus) Dimension DataRow 74 - Cell 2
76Ben King (USA) Dimension DataRow 75 - Cell 2
77Edvald Boasson Hagen (Nor) Dimension DataRow 76 - Cell 2
78Louis Meintjes (RSA) Dimension DataRow 77 - Cell 2
79Rasmus Fossum Tiller (Nor) Dimension DataRow 78 - Cell 2
80Martijn Tusveld (Ned) Team Sunweb0:00:35
81Edward Theuns (Bel) Trek-SegafredoRow 80 - Cell 2
82Jacopo Mosca (Ita) Trek-SegafredoRow 81 - Cell 2
83Gianluca Brambilla (Ita) Trek-SegafredoRow 82 - Cell 2
84Kiel Reijnen (USA) Trek-SegafredoRow 83 - Cell 2
85Niklas Eg (Den) Trek-SegafredoRow 84 - Cell 2
86John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-SegafredoRow 85 - Cell 2
87Jon Aberasturi Izaga (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:37
88Jonathan Lastra Martinez (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 87 - Cell 2
89Gonzalo Serrano Rodriguez (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 88 - Cell 2
90Alexander Aranburu Deba (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 89 - Cell 2
91Pierre Latour (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 90 - Cell 2
92Dorian Godon (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 91 - Cell 2
93Silvan Dillier (Swi) AG2R La MondialeRow 92 - Cell 2
94Clement Venturini (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 93 - Cell 2
95Sergei Chernetski (Rus) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:40
96Tony Martin (Ger) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 95 - Cell 2
97Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 96 - Cell 2
98George Bennett (NZl) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 97 - Cell 2
99Primoz Roglic (Slo) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 98 - Cell 2
100Robert Gesink (Ned) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 99 - Cell 2
101Jesper Hansen (Den) Cofidis Solutions Credits0:00:43
102Jesus Herrada (Spa) Cofidis Solutions CreditsRow 101 - Cell 2
103Stéphane Rossetto (Fra) Cofidis Solutions CreditsRow 102 - Cell 2
104Jose Herrada (Spa) Cofidis Solutions CreditsRow 103 - Cell 2
105Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis Solutions CreditsRow 104 - Cell 2
106Damien Touze (Fra) Cofidis Solutions CreditsRow 105 - Cell 2
107Cristian Rodriguez Martin (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:46
108Cyril Barthe (Fra) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 107 - Cell 2
109Aritz Bagues Kalparsoro (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 108 - Cell 2
110Sergio Samitier Samitier (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 109 - Cell 2
111Hector Saez Benito (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 110 - Cell 2
112Mikel Bizkarra Etxegibel (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 111 - Cell 2
113Oscar Rodriguez Garaicoechea (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 112 - Cell 2
114Mikel Iturria Segurola (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 113 - Cell 2
115Manuele Boaro (Ita) Astana Pro Team0:00:47
116Enrico Battaglin (Ita) Katusha-Alpecin0:00:50
117Pavel Kochetkov (Rus) Katusha-AlpecinRow 116 - Cell 2
118Domingos Gonçalves (Por) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:52
119Sebastian Henao (Col) Team Ineos0:00:53
120Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Lotto Soudal0:00:54
121Phil Bauhaus (Ger) Bahrain-MeridaRow 120 - Cell 2
122Fernando Barcelo Aragon (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 121 - Cell 2
123Michael Storer (Aus) Team Sunweb0:00:55
124Nikias Arndt (Ger) Team SunwebRow 123 - Cell 2
125Sergio Pardilla Bellon (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:56
126Alex Kirsch (Lux) Trek-Segafredo0:00:59
127Geoffrey Bouchard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:01:06
128Valerio Conti (Ita) UAE Team Emirates0:01:07
129Fabio Aru (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 128 - Cell 2
130Tadej Pogacar (Slo) UAE Team EmiratesRow 129 - Cell 2
131Marco Marcato (Ita) UAE Team EmiratesRow 130 - Cell 2
132Jaco Venter (RSA) Dimension Data0:01:13
133François Bidard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:01:14
134Willem Jakobus Smit (RSA) Katusha-Alpecin0:01:17
135Luis Angel Mate Mardones (Spa) Cofidis Solutions Credits0:01:18
136Diego Rubio Hernandez (Spa) Burgos-BH0:01:22
137Jetse Bol (Ned) Burgos-BHRow 136 - Cell 2
138Jesus Ezquerra Muela (Spa) Burgos-BHRow 137 - Cell 2
139Ricardo Augusto Afonso Vilela (Por) Burgos-BHRow 138 - Cell 2
140Angel Madrazo Ruiz (Spa) Burgos-BHRow 139 - Cell 2
141Carl Fredrik Hagen (Nor) Lotto Soudal0:01:30
142Yukiya Arashiro (Jpn) Bahrain-MeridaRow 141 - Cell 2
143Luka Pibernik (Slo) Bahrain-MeridaRow 142 - Cell 2
144Francisco Ventoso (Spa) CCC Team0:01:37
145Jonas Koch (Ger) CCC TeamRow 144 - Cell 2
146Jorge Arcas (Spa) Movistar Team0:01:41
147Antonio Pedrero (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 146 - Cell 2
148Ian Stannard (GBr) Team IneosRow 147 - Cell 2
149Vasil Kiryienka (Blr) Team IneosRow 148 - Cell 2
150Clément Chevrier (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:01:43
151Darwin Atapuma (Col) Cofidis Solutions Credits0:01:48
152Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:01:50
153Peter Stetina (USA) Trek-Segafredo0:01:52
154Bruno Armirail (Fra) Groupama-FDJ0:01:54
155Sander Armee (Bel) Lotto Soudal0:01:57
156Logan Owen (USA) EF Education First0:01:58
157Jorge Cubero Galvez (Spa) Burgos-BH0:01:59
158Oscar Cabedo Carda (Spa) Burgos-BH0:02:12
159Pawel Poljanski (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe0:02:13
160Marc Sarreau (Fra) Groupama-FDJ0:02:19
161Mickael Delage (Fra) Groupama-FDJRow 160 - Cell 2
162Steve Morabito (Swi) Groupama-FDJRow 161 - Cell 2
163Nicholas Dlamini (RSA) Dimension Data0:02:21
164Mitchell Docker (Aus) EF Education First0:02:25
165Shane Archbold (NZl) Bora-Hansgrohe0:02:26
166Sam Bewley (NZl) Mitchelton-ScottRow 165 - Cell 2
167Pawel Bernas (Pol) CCC Team0:02:31
168Juan Sebastian Molano (Col) UAE Team Emirates0:02:43
169Sergio Henao (Col) UAE Team EmiratesRow 168 - Cell 2
170Fernando Gaviria (Col) UAE Team Emirates0:02:49
171Domen Novak (Slo) Bahrain-Merida0:03:03
172Nuno Matos (Por) Burgos-BH0:03:22
173Neilson Powless (USA) Team Jumbo-Visma0:04:22
174Lennard Hofstede (Ned) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 173 - Cell 2
175Sepp Kuss (USA) Team Jumbo-Visma0:04:46
176Oliviero Troia (Ita) UAE Team Emirates0:05:00
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Young Riders Classification
Pos.Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Miguel Angel Lopez (Col) Astana Pro Team0:14:51
2Fabio Jakobsen (Ned) Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:02
3James Knox (GBr) Deceuninck-QuickStepRow 2 - Cell 2
4Rémi Cavagna (Fra) Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:03
5Casper Pedersen (Den) Team Sunweb0:00:05
6Rob Power (Aus) Team Sunweb0:00:06
7Hugh John Carthy (GBr) EF Education First0:00:07
8Sergio Andres Higuita Garcia (Col) Equipo EuskadiRow 7 - Cell 2
9Daniel Martinez (Col) EF Education FirstRow 8 - Cell 2
10Gregor Mühlberger (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe0:00:13
11Nathan Van Hooydonck (Bel) CCC Team0:00:15
12Will Barta (USA) CCC TeamRow 11 - Cell 2
13Szymon Sajnok (Pol) CCC TeamRow 12 - Cell 2
14Benjamin Thomas (Fra) Groupama-FDJ0:00:16
15Romain Seigle (Fra) Groupama-FDJRow 14 - Cell 2
16Kilian Frankiny (Swi) Groupama-FDJRow 15 - Cell 2
17Nicholas Schultz (Aus) Mitchelton-Scott0:00:18
18Harm Vanhoucke (Bel) Lotto Soudal0:00:20
19Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBr) Team Ineos0:00:25
20Mark Padun (Ukr) Bahrain-Merida0:00:26
21Matteo Fabbro (Ita) Katusha-Alpecin0:00:33
22Steff Cras (Bel) Katusha-AlpecinRow 21 - Cell 2
23Ruben Guerreiro (Por) Katusha-AlpecinRow 22 - Cell 2
24Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier (Eri) Dimension Data0:00:34
25Ben O'Connor (Aus) Dimension DataRow 24 - Cell 2
26Rasmus Fossum Tiller (Nor) Dimension DataRow 25 - Cell 2
27Niklas Eg (Den) Trek-Segafredo0:00:35
28Gonzalo Serrano Rodriguez (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:37
29Alexander Aranburu Deba (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 28 - Cell 2
30Dorian Godon (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 29 - Cell 2
31Damien Touze (Fra) Cofidis Solutions Credits0:00:43
32Cristian Rodriguez Martin (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:46
33Cyril Barthe (Fra) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 32 - Cell 2
34Sergio Samitier Samitier (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 33 - Cell 2
35Oscar Rodriguez Garaicoechea (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 34 - Cell 2
36Phil Bauhaus (Ger) Bahrain-Merida0:00:54
37Fernando Barcelo Aragon (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country-MuriasRow 36 - Cell 2
38Michael Storer (Aus) Team Sunweb0:00:55
39Tadej Pogacar (Slo) UAE Team Emirates0:01:07
40Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:01:50
41Bruno Armirail (Fra) Groupama-FDJ0:01:54
42Logan Owen (USA) EF Education First0:01:58
43Oscar Cabedo Carda (Spa) Burgos-BH0:02:12
44Nicholas Dlamini (RSA) Dimension Data0:02:21
45Juan Sebastian Molano (Col) UAE Team Emirates0:02:43
46Fernando Gaviria (Col) UAE Team Emirates0:02:49
47Domen Novak (Slo) Bahrain-Merida0:03:03
48Nuno Matos (Por) Burgos-BH0:03:22
49Neilson Powless (USA) Team Jumbo-Visma0:04:22
50Lennard Hofstede (Ned) Team Jumbo-VismaRow 49 - Cell 2
51Sepp Kuss (USA) Team Jumbo-Visma0:04:46
52Oliviero Troia (Ita) UAE Team Emirates0:05:00
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Teams Classification
Pos.Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Astana Pro Team0:14:51
2Deceuninck-QuickStep0:00:02
3Team Sunweb0:00:05
4EF Education First0:00:07
5Bora-Hansgrohe0:00:13
6CCC Team0:00:15
7Movistar Team0:00:16
8Groupama-FDJRow 7 - Cell 2
9Mitchelton-Scott0:00:18
10Lotto Soudal0:00:19
11Team Ineos0:00:25
12Bahrain-Merida0:00:26
13Katusha-Alpecin0:00:33
14Dimension Data0:00:34
15Trek-Segafredo0:00:35
16Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:37
17AG2R La MondialeRow 16 - Cell 2
18Team Jumbo-Visma0:00:40
19Cofidis Solutions Credits0:00:43
20Euskadi Basque Country0:00:46
21UAE Team Emirates0:01:07
22Burgos-BH0:01:22

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Daniel Benson

Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.

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