Vuelta a España: Sepp Kuss climbs to stage 6 victory at Javalambre

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Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) ignited a solo attack with 3.3km remaining on the menacing climb to Observatorio Astrofísico de Javalambre and won stage 6 of the Vuelta a España.

Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ) outsprinted Romain Bardet (Team dsm-firmenich) across the mountaintop finish to seal the day's podium, and completely disrupt the GC standings.

The front trio were part of a 35-rider group that split the peloton halfway through the race, with Martinez vaulting from the virtual lead on the relentless day of climbing to take the overall race lead.

"It was an incredibly hard stage. We wanted to go away in the breakaway and just to test QuickStep. We knew it would be a hard day to control. That was the primary objective," Kuss said at the finish.

"The whole day I felt super, super good. I was only thinking about when to go, and when to try to make the difference. The whole climb I was just enjoying the environment we have in the Vuelta, it's always a special race for me.

"For me, to win a stage is just incredible. I'm in the general [classification] now, so one day at a time."

With the stage victory, Kuss moved up 10 spots to second overall. Martinez's lead is just eight seconds over the US climber, while Soler took over third on GC, 51 seconds back.

Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) succumbed to the multi-dimensional firepower from Jumbo-Visma and finished 3:24 behind the new leader of the race and is now ninth overall.

Riding all day with GC contenders and Jumbo-Visma teammates Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard, the first chink in the armour of Evenepoel came on the final climb, with under 6km to go. As Kuss launched his attack at the front of the race, Roglič orchestrated a huge acceleration a few kilometres back from the chase group, and Evenepoel could not match the acceleration.

How it unfolded

Stage 6 marked the second mountain finish in the opening week of racing. The race began at La Vall d'Uixó, nestled between the coast and the Espadás mountains. Before the 169 riders cleared a 7km neutralised section, points classification leader Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Lewis Askey (Groupam-FDJ) slowed for mechanical issues, while Jesus Ezquerra (Burgos-BH) stopped for a flat tyre.

Two kilometres into official racing hitting a small uncategorised ascent, the ery-familiar ignition switch for the first attack was hit by Thomas De Gendt (Lotto-Dstny), joined by Diego Andrés Camargo (EF Education-Easypost).  Two more kilometres on, Woot Poels (Bahrain Victorious) counter-attacked and was joined by Rui Costa (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty). Poels was quickly back in the peloton, but the trio of riders charged ahead.

With just 15km covered, a small group of riders went down in a heap, including the first red jersey of the race Lorenzo Milesi (Team dsm-firmenich), mountains classification leader Eduardo Sepúlveda (Lotto Dstny), Jumbo-Visma's Wilco Kelderman, Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates) and three teammates from Groupama-FDJ Samuel Watson, Lenny Martinez and Romain Grégoire. All remounted and rejoined the peloton.

The trio at the front lost interest in setting the pace on the rugged terrain with 10km to go to the Puerto de Arenillas, the first of a pair of category 3 climbs that served as the appetisers in the opening 83km to the uphill journey of 183.1km.

A split formed in the peloton and a group of 27 riders created separation at the head of the race with a lead of 20 seconds. Soudal-QuickStep came to the front of the peloton to shut down the move.

On the lower slopes of Arenillas (5.5km at 4.7%), Amanuel Gehbreigzabhier (Lidl-Trek) tried to escape, which failed, and then Jan Tratnik (Jumbo-Visma) attacked with Andreas Kron (Lotto-Dstny), but the peloton held a tight leash.

Tratnik accelerated again, this time in a bigger group with Emanuel Buchmann (Bora-Hansgrohe), Andreas Kron (Lotto Dstny), Oier Lazkano (Movistar), Ruben Fernandez (Cofidis), Max Poole (DSM-Firmenich), Cristian Rodriguez (Arkéa Samsic), Fabien Doubey (Total Energies) and Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA). From behind, a frenzy of additional riders moved across, including Jesus Herrada (Cofidis) led Oier Lazkano (Cofidis) and Nicolas Prodhomme (AG2R Citroën), who went over the top of the Puerto de Arenillas at the front.

With 124km covered, the escapees were reeled in on the other side of the climb. Two abandons were reported - Milesi, who had crashed in the opening kilometres, and Andrea Bagioli (Soudal-QuickStep). Soon Vine would also succumb to the earlier crash and pull out of the race.

The reset button was hit yet again just a few kilometres later, with six riders going clear - Oier Lazkano (Movistar), Paul Ourselin (TotalEnergies), Javier Romo (Astana Qazaqstan), Sylvain Moniquet (Lotto Dstny), Jesus Herrada (Cofidis) and Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA). They were joined by Juan Pedro Lopez (Lidl-Trek), Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto Dstny) and Cristian Rodriguez (Arkéa-Samsic), and they soon opened at  2:18 margin over the main peloton, with race leader Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) and Jumbo-Visma challengers Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič.

Meanwhile, a chase group of 33 riders decided to join the front pack, including dangerous climbers Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma), Marc Soler ( UAE Team Emirates), Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EasyPost) and Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ). With 105km to go, the massive front group had 4:20 on the red jersey group, giving Martinez the virtual race lead.

On the second categorised climb, the Alto Fuente de Rubielos (6.2km at 6%), Soler launched a solo attack. Lidl-Trek's Lopez bridged to the UAE climber, who led over the crest of the climb, and more riders rejoined them on the descent. The front group continued to reshape as 70km remained, while the gap to the peloton expanded to almost six minutes, Jumbo-Visma setting the pace.

For the next 20 kilometres there was a pause in the turmoil,  as the front group settled with 35 riders: Lenny Martinez, Rudy Molard, Michael Storer (Groupama-FDJ), Mattia Cattaneo, Louis Vervaeke (Soudal-QuickStep), Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates), Sepp Kuss, Jan Tratnik, Attila Valter, Dylan van Baarle (Jumbo-Visma), Santiago Buitrago, Mikel Landa, Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious), Emanuel Buchmann, Lennard Kämna (Bora-Hansgrohe), Andreas Kron, Sylvain Moniquet, Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Dstny), Hugh Carthy (EF Education-EasyPost), Oier Lazkano, Einer Rubio (Movistar), Jesus Herrada, Ruben Fernandez, Remy Rochas (Cofidis), Romain Bardet, Max Poole (Team dsm-firmenich), Dorian Godon, Nicolas Prodhomme (AG2R Citroën), Cristian Rodriguez (Arkéa Samsic), Thomas Bonnet, Fabien Doubey, Paul Ourselin (TotalEnergies), David De La Cruz (Astana Qazaqstan), Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Rui Costa (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty).

With under 30km to go, inspired collaboration by Ineos Grenadiers, Soudal-QuickStep and Movistar saw the peloton cut the gap to the leaders by almost half, now down to 3:33. The smaller ramps on Manzanera were behind them and now the approach to the sprint at Torrijas was next, setting the stage for the road up to Javalambre for the final battleground for GC supremacy, the final 11km averaging 8% to an altitude of 1956 metres.

Climb to Observatorio Astrofísico de Javalambre

Tratnik and De La Cruz led the long line of the breakaway group across the climb at Torrijas, leaving the riders in the peloton to close down 3:15 across the remaining 21.5km. Soler accelerated across the top to grab the six bonus seconds, moving past Lazkano for the haul and Kron third across the intermediate sprint.

QuickStep drove the chase, the peloton now about the same size as the breakaway. But the front group was on a mission and the gap began to grow again on the approach to the final climb, back to 3:40.

As the break hit the start of the final climb, leaving cheering fans behind in a small village and back to a remote landscape, the opening gradients hit hard of between 13-16%. Tratnik led the proceedings, then Storer moved out front to drive a solid pace.

Riders began to spread across the mountain road with 7.5km to go. Tratnik fell back from the front group along with teammate Van Baarle, as well as Costa, Herrada and Romo. Kuss remained tucked in the break for Jumbo-Visma with help from Valter.

Across the next kilometre, Kämna succumbed to the pace and was quickly off the back. Bardet, Buchmann, Lenny Martinez, Landa, Poels, Carthy, Soler and Kuss remained together at the front and kept the reduced Soudal-QuickStep-led red jersey group at bay by 3:36.

Rubio attacked with under 4km to go and went clear on a stiff section. Bardet and Martinez countered and tried to get his back wheel. Then Kuss struck from behind with 3.3km.

Behind in the chase group, Roglič accelerated to the front of that bunch and Evenepoel appeared to be in trouble, as he did not respond but clung to the wheel of teammate Mattia Cattaneo.

Valter dropped back from the breakaway to help Roglič, who was joined by Vingegaard, the Jumbo trio trailed by Mas. Evenepoel followed behind by 30 seconds.

Kuss had nothing but daylight in front of him with 2km to go, flying towards the finish. Bardet and Martinez rode together, no longer charging towards the finish but looking to survive. Martinez made the final kick in the closing 50 metres to take second and the GC lead.

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