What. Just. Happened.
"Nobody beats Cancellara in an individual time trial. Nobody. Never. Well, maybe someone like Tony Martin or Menchov might have a shot... What? Velits? No way. Really? Really????? You're joking, right?" Yes, Peter Velits stunned the world (myself certainly included) by winning the individual time trial, and winning it decisively. Velits finished with a 12 second advantage over Menchov and a whopping 37 over third place Cancellara who was the heavy favorite going into the stage. To Spartacus's defense, he did have some more extreme winds to deal with and that could have cost him quite a few seconds, but nobody will ever know just how many. What is undeniable is the dedication of the young Velits, who also moved onto the podium. Ezequiel Mosquera also had a successful ride, and moved himself up to 2nd overall and possibly is the only one who has a shot at Nibali going into the final few days of the Vuelta. This must mean that things went wrong for overnight GC leader Joaquin Rodriguez, and wrong is certainly an understatement.
The wheels just fell off for the young Spaniard, who gave it all he had but just could not pace himself like the rest of the leaders. He lost well over 4 minutes and possibly a shot at the Vuelta title. He also fell to 5th in the GC standings, and is in danger of missing the podium entirely. While the metaphorical wheels fell off for Rodriguez, Nibali almost actually had that problem. Nibali had mechanical trouble during the stage today, and had to scramble after his repairs in order to limit his losses and hold his GC advantage.
Tomorrow is flat as a pancake. Bunch sprint, and maybe the last one of the race.
"Nobody beats Cancellara in an individual time trial. Nobody. Never. Well, maybe someone like Tony Martin or Menchov might have a shot... What? Velits? No way. Really? Really????? You're joking, right?" Yes, Peter Velits stunned the world (myself certainly included) by winning the individual time trial, and winning it decisively. Velits finished with a 12 second advantage over Menchov and a whopping 37 over third place Cancellara who was the heavy favorite going into the stage. To Spartacus's defense, he did have some more extreme winds to deal with and that could have cost him quite a few seconds, but nobody will ever know just how many. What is undeniable is the dedication of the young Velits, who also moved onto the podium. Ezequiel Mosquera also had a successful ride, and moved himself up to 2nd overall and possibly is the only one who has a shot at Nibali going into the final few days of the Vuelta. This must mean that things went wrong for overnight GC leader Joaquin Rodriguez, and wrong is certainly an understatement.
The wheels just fell off for the young Spaniard, who gave it all he had but just could not pace himself like the rest of the leaders. He lost well over 4 minutes and possibly a shot at the Vuelta title. He also fell to 5th in the GC standings, and is in danger of missing the podium entirely. While the metaphorical wheels fell off for Rodriguez, Nibali almost actually had that problem. Nibali had mechanical trouble during the stage today, and had to scramble after his repairs in order to limit his losses and hold his GC advantage.
Tomorrow is flat as a pancake. Bunch sprint, and maybe the last one of the race.
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