Nairo Quintana (Movistar) fended off all of the attacks of his rivals to virtually seal his first Vuelta a España victory on the Alto de Aitana. Chris Froome (Sky) tried but failed to distance the Colombian, and sat up to applaud Quintana as the pair crossed the line on the race's final major obstacle before the parade into Madrid.
Esteban Chaves (Orica-BikeExchange) launched an audacious attack to unseat Alberto Contador (Tinkoff) from the final podium position, going clear on the penultimate climb with almost 50km left to race. Chaves linked up with teammate Damien Howson, who dropped back from the day's breakaway and towed his team leader to the foot of the final climb. Contador rallied but could not close down the gap and lost third place by 13 seconds.
Pierre Latour (AG2R La Mondiale) won the stage from the breakaway in a scintillating duel with Darwin Atapuma (BMC). Fabio Felline (Trek-Segafredo) was third on the day.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
