Vincenzo Nibali (Bahrain-Merida) won the third stage of the Vuelta a España on Monday, jumping out of a select group of contenders inside the last few hundred metres in Andorra to cross the finish line a few moments ahead of David de la Cruz (Quick-Step Floors) and Chris Froome (Sky).
The day offered the first mountainous profile thus far in the 2017 Vuelta, and the parcours – and a heavy pace set by Team Sky on the final climb – put paid to the ambitions of several GC hopefuls, with Trek-Segafredo's Alberto Contador among them.
Froome attacked off the front near the summit of the final climb with Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott), initially opening up a gap, but Nibali and a several others ultimately rejoined the leaders, allowing Nibali to snatch the win at the end of the stage.
Froome, however, took the overall race lead, and now wears the red jersey for the first time since 2011
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