As it happened: Bunch sprint on summit finish sees GC contenders come to the fore

Hello and welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of stage 2 of the Vuelta a España 2025.

Here's a look at the profile for today's stage. Despite there being no categorised climbs before the final 10km of the stage, the riders will be gradually climbing throughout the day as they start in Alba and head southwest towards the Alps.

The final climb to Limone Piemonte (9.8km at 5.1%) features a steady average gradient, with the steepest slopes coming towards the top. With a relatively easy stage beforehand, it is unlikely to be enough to unsettle any of the GC contenders, but we could still see some moves for the stage win in the final few kilometres, with bonus seconds also on offer at the summit.

'GC a key step but winning would be the biggest success' - Tom Pidcock makes stage victories in Vuelta a España main priority

Having finished ninth on yesterday's opening stage, Tom Pidcock is clearly keen to make his mark on this race, as he eyes a top placing in the general classification. However, the British rider on Q36.5 Pro Cycling is also targeting stage wins, with today's summit finish well-suited to his characteristics.

The second stage of this year's Vuelta a España will get underway with the neutralised start in just under half an hour at 13:35 local time.

What can we expect to see from Jonas Vingegaard and Visma-Lease a Bike on the first summit finish of the race? Though the Danish rider is usually more conservative in his approach to racing than his arch rival Tadej Pogačar, he may want to make a statement early in the race and put down a marker to all of the other contenders.

In case you missed it, here are the results from yesterday's stage to Novara, as Jasper Philipsen took a dominant victory in the sprint finish ahead of Ethan Vernon and went into the overall lead of the race. With the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider expected to lose the jersey on today's stage, who will be in red after the summit finish to Limone Piemonte?

'I'll give it a shot' - Trailblazing Monegasque rider Victor Langellotti ready to challenge for Vuelta a España first summit finish on stage 2

One rider expected to challenge for the stage win today is Victor Langellotti. After his victory on a similar stage at the Tour de Pologne, the Monegasque rider on Ineos Grenadiers is currently in excellent form and will be hoping to take his first Grand Tour success at La Vuelta.

The riders have now rolled out for the neutralised start, with the flag drop to officially get the stage underway coming up shortly.

A relaxed start to the day for Cofidis' British duo of Simon Carr and Oliver Knight. The French outfit will be hoping to score some all-important UCI points at this year's Vuelta a España, in order to pull themselves out of the relegation zone in the WorldTour rankings.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - Official Start

The flag has dropped and the riders are officially underway for stage 2 of the Vuelta a España. The attacks have already started, with Nico Denz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Gal Glivar (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Jakub Otruba (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Liam Slock (Lotto) getting themselves up the road in a four-rider group. They currently have a lead of around 25 seconds over the peloton, but the gap has not settled just yet.

Sinuhé Fernández (Burgos Burpellet BH) is attempting to bridge across to the breakaway alone, with Q36.5 Pro Cycling beginning to gather their riders at the front of the peloton to control the gap.

Nico Denz has decided to drop out of the breakaway, meaning that it is now just a three-rider group at the head of the race. The German rider may have had a call in his ear from the team car to come back to the peloton, as it already looked unlikely that the move would go all the way to the finish.

There are some ominous clouds in the distance and conditions are fairly overcast, with some rain expected at the finish later today, but it is currently unclear if the race will be affected by the weather.

Alpecin-Deceuninck are honouring the leader's jersey, as they have come to the front of the peloton with Jasper Philipsen in the maillot rojo and are sat right behind Q36.5 Pro Cycling. It is unlikely that they will contribute to the chase, as they currently have Gal Glivar up the road in the breakaway.

Sinuhé Fernández has now bridged across to the breakaway, so it is now a four-rider group at the head of the race once again. They currently have around a minute and twenty seconds of a gap over the peloton.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 120km to go

The gap to the breakaway is currently around two minutes, but they seem to be sitting up a bit in an attempt to conserve energy, which will force the peloton to slow down in turn, as they will have no interest in bringing them back with this long left in the stage.

It has been a fairly steady start to the stage, with an average speed of 44.4km/h for the first hour of racing. Q36.5 Pro Cycling are still setting the pace in the peloton, but it is a fairly relaxed bunch for now.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 100km to go

The gap to the breakaway is still around two minutes with the peloton holding them at that gap for now. Xabier Azparren is on the front of the peloton for Q36.5 Pro Cycling, who are clearly confident in Tom Pidcock's chances for today's stage.

At the intermediate sprints in Busca, Liam Slock outsprinted the rest of the breakaway to take the maximum points, with Otruba coming across the line in second place ahead of Fernández and Glivar. In the peloton behind, Ethan Vernon took the remaining ten points, closing the gap to Jasper Philipsen in the points classification.

The four riders at the head of the race are all Grand Tour debutants, with all of them riding a major three-week stage race for the first time in their respective careers. Being in today's breakaway will certainly give them all valuable experience.

The riders have just passed through the town of Cuneo, which has been a regular fixture at the Giro d'Italia over the years. The last time the Corsa Rosa visited the Piemontese town was in 2022, when Arnaud Démare won in maglia ciclamino.

Jasper Philipsen has gone all-out for his day in the maillot rojo, as he is wearing a full red skinsuit with matching gloves, sunglasses, helmet and bike.

Renewi Tour: Arnaud De Lie defeats Mathieu van der Poel on final stage to claim overall victory

Read our race report and find out the full results from the final stage of the Renewi Tour.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 50km to go

The riders are currently in the foothills as they approach the mountains. The gap to the breakaway is currently around a minute and a half, with Xabier Azparren ever-present on the front of the peloton to set the pace and control the gap for Q36.5 Pro Cycling.

Jakub Otruba has attacked from the breakaway, with Gal Glivar the only rider able to go with him so far. Liam Slock is gradually making his way back up to the leading duo, whilst Sinuhé Fernández appears to be dropped after having bridged across to the group earlier in the stage.

The rain has begun to fall at the Vuelta a España as the leading riders head onto a short descent. Teams may begin to come to the front of the peloton to position their leaders and keep them out of danger.

Liam Slock is back with the leading duo of Glivar and Otruba at the head of the race. Meanwhile, the entire Q36.5 Pro Cycling team has come to the front in the peloton, as they continue to control the gap to the breakaway, which has gone back above two minutes.

Guillaume Martin (Groupama-FDJ) crashed in the peloton on a wet descent, but is now back on his bike. The rain is continuing to fall for now, but reports from the finish say that it is dry for now.

Guillaume Martin has now abandoned the race after his crash a few kilometres ago. A massive disappointment for the Frenchman, who becomes the first rider to leave the race.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 30km to go

After three hours of racing, the pace in the peloton has now begin to increase as the race nears the finale of the stage. More teams have begun to come to the fore in the bunch, with Q36.5 Pro Cycling fighting to keep their position at the front. The gap to the breakaway is currently at a minute and a half.

Crash for George Bennett (Israel-Premier Tech) in the peloton as the race passes through a small town. He is now back on his bike and after initially struggling to get to his feet. Magnus Sheffield (Ineos Grenadiers) also appeared to be affected, but it is unclear as to what extent he was involved.

Big crash in the peloton, with lots of riders hitting the deck through the exit of a roundabout. Q36.5 Pro Cycling and Visma-Lease a Bike were the main teams that were affected, as both Tom Pidcock and Jonas Vingegaard went down.

The peloton has sat up after the crash and neutralised the chase for now, allowing many of the riders affected to catch back on to the back of the group. Vingegaard and Pidcock appeared to emerge unscathed and are now back in the peloton.

Axel Zingle (Visma-Lease a Bike) appeared to dislocate his shoulder and it looked like his race could be over, but after a quick trip to the ambulance he is now back underway and has a long chase to make it back to the bunch.

The crash has had a big impact on the peloton, with the pace dropping considerably and the gap to the breakaway going back up to over a minute and a half. It seems to be picking up again now though, as more teams are coming back to the front.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 15km to go

With 5km to go until the start of the final climb to the finish at Limone Piemonte, teams are once again beginning to organise themselves in the peloton. The gap to the three-rider breakaway is beginning to fall and it will not be long until they are caught.

Lidl-Trek, Bahrain Victorious, Groupama-FDJ, Picnic PostNL and UAE Team Emirates-XRG are among the teams controlling the pace at the front of the peloton. The gap to the breakaway has now fallen to under a minute.

Visma-Lease a Bike have now reorganised themselves after the crash and are back at the front of the peloton. George Bennett is also back in the bunch after his crash earlier on.

Ineos Grenadiers and EF Education-EasyPost are moving up on the side of the peloton as they approach the foot of the final climb to the finish.

Jasper Philipsen has been dropped from the peloton, with the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider set to lose the maillot rojo as expected.

The riders are now on the final climb to the finish at Limone Piemonte (9.8km at 5.1%), with the gap to the breakaway now at under half a minute.

The breakaway have now resigned to the fact that they are going to be caught, as they have begun to attack each other in an attempt to win the combativity award. Liam Slock has now gone clear, dropping Glivar and Otruba from his wheel.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - 5km to go

Liam Slock has now been caught by the peloton, with Ineos Grenadiers now setting the pace at the front of the main bunch along with Visma-Lease a Bike and Jayco AlUla.

Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe have now moved themselves up to the front of the peloton to position Jai Hindley.

Visma-Lease a Bike are in pole position at the front of the peloton, as Wilco Kelderman is lining out the peloton with Jonas Vingegaard on his wheel.

Lidl-Trek have moved up with Julian Bernard, Giulio Ciccone and Andrea Bagioli. Ben Tulett is still setting a pace for Jonas Vingegaard, but Visma-Lease a Bike have competition as they near the final kilometres.

Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) has found the wheel of Jonas Vingegaard, but it is still Lidl-Trek controlling the front for now.

Under the flamme rouge and into the final kilometre, it looks like it will be a mountaintop bunch sprint, as it is still a large group coming to the finish.

Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) attacks with Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) following.

Tom Pidcock attacks with Giulio Ciccone and Jonas Vingegaard following.

Giulio Ciccone and Jonas Vingegaard come to the line together in a photo finish, with the pair coming around Pidcock in the final few hundred metres.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - Jonas Vingegaard wins

Jonas Vingegaard has won stage 2 of the Vuelta a España, coming around Giulio Ciccone in the closing metres and pipping the Italian rider at the line to claim victory at Limone Piemonte. The Danish rider also goes into the overall lead of the race and takes the maillot rojo.

A first Grand Tour stage win in over a year for Jonas Vingegaard and his first professional victory since the Volta ao Algarve in February. A strong showing from the Danish rider as he wins at the first opportunity, with a strong performance from his Visma-Lease a Bike team in the finale.

Vuelta a España Stage 2 - Results

Jonas Vingegaard post-race interview

"To be honest, you're not going to let a stage win, so when I saw the opportunity, of course I'll take it. Super happy with the victory today, it's been a while since my last victory obviously. Super happy with how I felt and how the team did today, also having the red jersey," Vingegaard said in his post-race interview.

When asked about Giulio Ciccone's attack in the final few hundred metres, he said "I just went in his wheel and, to be honest, before the corner I didn't think it would be possible to pass him, but then from the corner it was a bit longer to the finish than I thought, so then luckily I could just pass him."

Speaking about the crash he was involved in during the run-in to the final climb, he said "I went down pretty hard, but seems like I didn't hurt myself too bad. I have a bit of bruising, but I think because it was so slippery I was sliding more, so I didn't get any bad road rash or anything."

A matter of inches separating Jonas Vingegaard and Giulio Ciccone at the finish, with the Dane winning on the bike throw at Limone Piemonte, denying the Lidl-Trek rider a home victory on Italian soil.

Some photos from today's podium...

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A quick look at the profile for stage 3, as the race heads over Alpine foothills on an undulating stage from San Maurizio Canavese to Ceres. The category two climb of Issiglio (5.5km at 6.5%) comes around the midpoint of the stage before the intermediate sprint, where bonus seconds will once again be up for grabs.

The final climb up to the finish at Ceres (2.6km at 3.6%) will likely see another hilltop sprint between the puncheurs, perhaps with some of the more versatile sprinters in contention fir the victory as well.