Vuelta a España leader Sepp Kuss took another huge step forward in his fight for the overall victory on Friday as he strengthened his lead on the brutally difficult stage 13 to the Col du Tourmalet with a second place behind teammate Jonas Vingegaard.
In a remarkable day of Grand Tour racing, such was Jumbo-Visma's domination in the Vuelta's first Pyrenean stage that they not only seized the top three places on the stage with Vingegaard, Kuss and Primoz Roglic but now occupy the top three places in the overall classification.
Kuss now leads by 1:37 over Roglic, and 1:44 over Vingegaard, massively strengthening his chances of overall victory, even if there are still three ultra-difficult mountain stages still to come, starting with Sunday's ascent of the fearsome Puerto de Larrau and Puerto de Bonaigua.
The American confirmed to reporters afterwards that the team's plan had worked to perfection, with Vingegaard, the worst-placed of the Jumbo GC triumvirate, designated as the first of the three to attack.
Kuss then put in some moves of his own but only once Vingegaard was clearly out of reach for the rest of the favourites and aimed to gain more time for himself.
"We didn't know where Jonas' attack would happen, but there was a good moment [on the Tourmalet] after Wilco Kelderman had done his job, and there was some hesitation amongst the favourites," Kuss recounted.
"I made my own attack to open up a gap, because I don't have that kind of punch that riders like [Juan] Ayuso or Roglič can have."
Looking increasingly solid as a leader, Kuss said that days like the Tourmalet confirmed that he had options for victory, as did his above-expectations ride in the time trial of Valladolid.
"There are hard days to come, and today I had good legs, I felt I could attack in any moment. But we'll see what happens tomorrow [Sunday] and in the stages in Asturias in the third week."
As for whether Jumbo's superiority ran the risk of killing off any interest in the Vuelta, Kuss admitted that it was "sometimes a bit bittersweet for the spectators when you see such a strong team dominating like that in the overall.
"Every year in cycling strong teams like UAE appear, but the kind of teamwork we do in Jumbo-Visma is what makes the difference."
The Tourmalet podium ceremony included a homage to Federico Martín Bahamontes, the Spanish climbing ace and 1959 Tour de France winner who died earlier this summer.
When Kuss was asked if he had heard of the 'Eagle of Toledo', as Bahamontes was nicknamed, he confirmed he did by saying "Bahamontes is a legend. I told Jonas that one day he'll be like Bahamontes, a climbing legend. Bahamontes almost did better times on some climbs in the Tour than we did, and that's just crazy if you factor in things like the bikes, the nutrition and the technology we have today."
Bahamontes never won the Vuelta a España, but if Jumbo-Visma's position in the overall looks unassailable, Kuss preached a word of caution when it was suggested that it was still possible for them to lose the race.
"It's always possible," he concluded. "If one of us has a bad moment, then it's complicated for all of us. But right now, because we have good legs, we're feeling confident."
