Bozic sprints to win ahead of bunch

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On another hot day at the Vuelta a España, Vacansoleil's Borut Bozic outsmarted some formidable sprint competition to claim the Vuelta's sixth stage in Xàtiva. The Slovenian launched his sprint early and held off the best efforts of some of the fastest sprinters on the planet to take the biggest win of his career and, after several days of brave endeavor, a win for his Dutch team.

Bozic finished one bike length clear of Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) and Daniele Bennati (Liquigas), who took his second successive third-place stage finish. André Greipel (Columbia-HTC) finished in 10th position on the stage but did enough to extend his tenure in the Gold leader's jersey by at least another day. Tom Boonen (Quick Step) remains six seconds behind in second place. Bennati and Farrar fill third and fourth, three seconds further back.

For Bozic however, the classification will be of little concern. A member of a wildcard team, the 29-year-old seized his opportunity and now has a big win to add to his palmares. With a week more suited to slighter riders ahead, Bozic will climb content in the knowledge that he is a Grand Tour stage winner.

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If at first you don't succeed...

Another scorcher and another squadron of brave souls prepared to throw caution to the proverbial wind. Matthé Pronk (Vacansoleil) and José Antonio López Gil (Andalucía-Cajasur) decided they hadn't enjoyed enough time off the front on Thursday. They chose to ignore the company of their peers and set off in the early kilometres with Bingen Fernandez (Cofidis) and Aitor Perez Arrieta (Contentpolis-Ampo).

It was a case of déjà vu for the peloton as they relaxed their grip on the reins and allowed the breakaway to gallop away to an almost seven-minute gap after 30 kilometres had been covered. Shortly thereafter, Columbia-HTC made it clear that they had designs on their third stage win of the race as the team played policemen for the bunch, maintaining the gap at around the five minute mark.

As the mercury topped 38 degrees Celsius, the entire race resorted to its own form of self-preservation. The speed for the first three hours of racing did not reach the number on the thermometer as the peloton rolled off 35 kilometre in each of the hours that passed. Thoughts of Saturday's time trial, or, at the very least, air conditioning, occupied the collective mentality.

Out in front, the leaders pushed on regardless. López Gil (Andalucía-Cajasur) was quickly becoming the biggest benefactor. At the summit of the second climb of the day, the Category 3 Alto de Millares, the Spaniard had done enough to take the best climber's jersey from Aitor Hernandez (Eukaltel-Euskadi). Pronk meanwhile was starting to signs of two big days out. The Dutchman began to yo-yo towards the top of Millares, but had no trouble catching back on the descent.

As the race pushed its way through its third quarter, the peloton began the painstaking process of reeling the leaders in. Like experienced fly-fishermen the group patiently retrieved the line given out at the start of the day. By the time the leading quartet went through the town of Navarrés their advantage was back to just three-and-a-half minutes.

As the race entered the outskirts of Xàtiva for a ceremonial visit - 40 kilometers prior to the finale proper - the gap ticked below two minutes. As the Category 3 Alto de Beniganim commenced, Pronk finally decided enough was enough as he left the three Spaniards to their own devices and returned to the peloton. The Beniganim forced a game of musical chairs for the breakaway as Aitor Perez Arrieta (Contentpolis-Ampo) traded places with Italian Paolo Tiralongo (Lampre-NGC), who bridged across to join José Antonio López Gil (Andalucía-Cajasur) and Bingen Fernandez (Cofidis) in front with 25 kilometres remaining.

Ah, the impetuousness of youth

Ten kilometres later, Columbia had closed the race down, upping the pace as they passed the leaders in order to discourage any further attacks. However, as the road tilted upwards and briefly reduced the momentum of the bunch, it was clear that two riders had missed the Columbia memo. Alessandro Ballan (Lampre-NGC) and Matti Breschel (Saxo Bank) went away and pushed out to a 16-second gap at the top of the climb.

Despite surviving the descent intact, the arrival of David de la Fuente (Fuji-Servetto) and Philippe Gilbert (Silence-Lotto) alongside the group marked the end for the remnants of the day's original break. As the peloton linked up with the back of the group, Gilbert gave his traditional death rattle, but was himself swallowed up within a kilometre.

As Gilbert returned, a short-lived flourish from David Moncoutie (Cofidis) and Johnny Hoogerland (Vancasoleil) did little more than guide the way back into Xàtiva. As the sprinters moved to the front, it was the green jerseys of Liquigas that were most prominent, with Tom Boonen slotted into fifth wheel.

A heady cocktail of speed, heat and disorganisation saw the final kilometre filled with a long line of cyclists with no discernable head. Scattered lead-out men from each of the main squads traded places at the front, but as the heads of state waited for the one another to go, it was Vacansoleil's Borut Bozic who hit the afterburner first. The Slovenian showing a clean pair of heels rolled out a prolonged sprint. 177 kilometres from where it all began; it was Bozic who threw his hands aloft in Xàtiva.

There's no place like home, there's no place like home

In spite of the searing heat of the day, the attrition rate was impressively low. Likely due to the relaxed paced of the peloton, just two riders were peeling the numbers from their backs. Andalucía-Cajasur's Manuel Ortega and Contentpolis-Ampo's Oscar García-Casarrubios called it quits during the stage.

The two Spaniards had at least found themselves a little further down the Vuelta road than the biggest departure of the day: Luxembourg's Kim Kirchen. The Columbia-HTC rider did not start today after he fell ill the previous evening.

The abandons mean that 192 riders will be expected to take to the start ramp of the Vuelta's first individual time trial tomorrow in Valencia. The 30.3-kilometre course will see members of the peloton take in their second motor-racing circuit of the race; this time around it will be sections of the Formula 1 circuit in the Spanish costal city.

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