Vuelta: Wout van Aert relentless in Cordoba, Ben O’Connor stays in red

Second stage success for Wout van Aert

After six winners in as many stages, the Vuelta a España 2024 offers the first encore: to sign it è Wout van Aert, who after conquering the success in the last stage on Portuguese soil last Monday, won on Friday, again in a sprint, on the finish line of Cordoba, at the end of a 180.5 km route that started from Archidona.

Nothing to do, on the Andalusian city’s finish line, for the other sprinters: behind the Belgian of Team Visma-Lease a Bike, who confirmed his green jersey as leader of the points classification, were Czech Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) and Spaniard Pau Miquel Delgado (Equipo Kern Pharma), who completed the day’s podium. Good seventh place for Lorenzo Rota (Intermarché-Wanty), first of the Italians.

Nothing changes in the overall standings, where Ben O'Connor (Decathlon-AG2R-La Mondiale Team) retains the red jersey of leader of the standings gained thanks to the amazing solo breakaway of the Yunquera stage. At 4'45" there'è Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), at 4'59" however, Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) remains third.

He remains sixth in the overall standings, as well as first among the Under 26s, Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain Victorious), thus holding the white jersey. His gap in the standings from O'Connor è of 5'29". Saturday will be the turn of the eighth stage of the Spanish race, still all in Andalusia: it starts in Ubeda to arrive, after 159 km, in Cazorla, for a stage with some pitfalls that could reward the right breakaway.