The young Belgian star Remco Evenepoel took the overall lead at the first mountain finish of the 77th Vuelta and made a clear statement in the duel with last year’s winner Primoz Roglic.
On Thursday (25.08.2022) the 22-year-old took second place behind the Australian winner of the day Jay Vine on the sixth stage over 181.2 kilometers from Bilbao to Pico Jano and took 1:12 minutes from Roglic, who was fifth on the day.
“The best thing I’ve ever done”
Evenepoel is now 21 seconds ahead of the previous leader Rudy Molard from France in the overall standings. For the Belgian it is the first lead in a grand tour. “I’m proud. A big dream has come true. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done”said Evenepoel.
Roglic, who recently won the Tour of Spain three times in a row, is fourth, 1:01 minutes behind. The German professional cyclist Nikias Arndt, who finished third overall the day before, didn’t play a role this time and lost a lot of time.
From Camargo to Cistierna
On Friday, the Vuelta continues with the seventh stage over 190 kilometers from Camargo to Cistierna. Big changes in the overall ranking are then not to be expected.