The Vuelta a España has long been a special race for Jay Vine, having made his WorldTour debut there in 2021, started all of the past five editions, claimed the KOM jersey in 2024, and now has taken three stage wins after his latest solo triumph into Pal on stage 6.
But this one was perhaps the most important for the Australian, with his wife, Bre, and young son, Harrison, awaiting him at the finish in their native Andorra.
Vine was spurred on by his family's presence, but also his knowledge of the local roads. His winning move came in the final 21km over the top of the penultimate climb and onto a slippery descent that was made all the more manageable, having likely trained on it countless times.
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Once Vine got away, as tends to be the case when he's in top shape, he's incredibly difficult to bring back, with his elite time trialling skills shining through and a third solo victory at the Spanish Grand Tour coming off the back of it. But it's a peak that he wasn't certain would arrive this early in the Vuelta, with it only being added to his calendar in the past few weeks.
"Absolutely, the Vuelta is a special race to me. It was my first WorldTour race, my first victory was at the Vuelta, and it's something that I always love doing at the end of the year. It wasn't on my schedule for this year, but I'm so glad it was included in the end," said Vine in his winner's press conference.
"To be able to win in Andorra in front of my son with my wife, it's unbelievable and incredibly motivating," he added, speaking moments after his win. "The last 5k, all I could think of was 'This is for you, Harrison, this is for you' and just get there as quick as possible."
Aside from knowing the terrain like the back of his hand, Vine's pre-stage deficit of more than 20 minutes meant that he had no interest in the red jersey, which the likes of runner-up and new race leader Torstein Træen (Bahrain-Victorious) did have to consider.
"I know these roads pretty well, I'm from just down the hill," said Vine. "With the headwind, it was hard to get the guys to really pull through and make it really hard, so I decided to go at the top [of Comella] with the wet descent.
"I know it really well, so I thought this was my chance to get away, and then there's no funny business, it's just mano a mano.
"I thought maybe if I got away and I pushed the descent, which I know quite well, that it was possible to stay away until the finish. I was also worried that maybe the headwind through La Messana might slow me down and they might cooperate behind, but I think everyone behind was looking for the jersey, and I'm 20 minutes down, so that wasn't really on my mind – I was just all about going for the stage win."
Vine's victory meant UAE Team Emirates XRG went back-to-back on stages at the Vuelta, after their triumph in Wednesday's team time trial, and brought them closer to the record total of 86 pro victories in a season they are chasing. They now have 75 with the rest of the Vuelta and a whole lot more racing still to come with the likes of Tadej Pogačar.
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