Philippe Gilbert (Deceuninck-QuickStep) claimed his sixth career Vuelta a Espana stage win Thursday in Bilboa after soloing away from his breakaway companions over the final three punchy climbs.
The cagey Belgian almost fell victim to a two-rider chase from Spaniards Alexander Aranburu (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Fernando Barcelo (Euskadi-Murias), but a lack of cooperation among the pair in the closing metres let Gilbert hang onto victory by just three seconds.
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