Anton leads the Vuelta a Espana
Igor Anton took the overall lead of the 2010 Vuelta a Espana after the eighth stage but lost it to Joaquim Rodriguez in stage 10. The Euskaltel-Euskadi rider took his second stage victory in stage 11 and regained control of the leader’s jersey.
"Right now I'm on a cloud and I prefer to live the present, enjoy what is happening to me in this Vuelta and keep trying to use my time," said Anton.
The final climb of the stage was led by Ezequiel Mosquera, who shot to the lead in the final five kilometres. Rodriguez and Vincenzo Nibali followed him but eventually Mosquera dropped them by 2.5km from the finish line. Anton found the strength during Mosquera’s solo lead to jump past Rodriquez and Nibali and finally taking the lead just before the finish line.
"There was good wind and it wasn't difficult to overcome in a port like this, so I preferred to ride at the back, trying not to waste my strength,” said Anton. “The same happened when Mosquera attacked. That pace was impossible to follow and I preferred to speed up at the end. I was not thinking on winning, but it has gone well, especially considering the bonus, which is also important."
Mosquera finished in second and stands in fifth overall. Rodriquez, for team Katusha, fell way behind and lost more than a minute to Anton, the new leader, and now stands in fourth overall. Nibali, for Liquigas, finished in fifth, 23 seconds behind the stage winner, and stands in second place overall, 45 seconds behind. Xavier Tondo finished the stage in third and stands in the same position overall, between Nibali and Rodriguez.
“It’s not such a big surprise to find me up there, I think,” said the 31-year-old Tondo. “After fifteen days at the Giro, I was third, so I can improve my position here as well.”
Rigoberto Uran finished the stage in fourth and stand seventh overall, while Frank Schleck finished the stage in ninth and stands in sixth overall. Denis Menchov of Team Rabobank, podium finisher in the Tour de France, couldn’t hold his ground up to the summit finish, the first of the Vuelta. Cervelo’s Carlos Sastre, 2008 Tour de France winner and top-five finisher in his last five times competing in the Vuelta, stands in ninth overall, 22 seconds behind his teammate Tondo, though the latter still considers himself a support rider for Sastre.
“There’s no other option, I’m here to work for Carlos as had always been planned between us,” said Tondo. “I yet have to finish my first Grand Tour. I’m not afraid of racing for three weeks in a row. At the Giro, I would have liked to have seen what I could achieve in the third week but I got sick and I had to go home. I want to go step by step. What I’m doing here at the Vuelta is also an investment for next season. It will help me to perform better in 2011.”
Tags: