La Farrapona (Spain) (AFP)
First success on a grand tour for David Gaudu: the French climber of Groupama-FDJ won the 11th stage of the Tour of Spain at the top of the Alto de La Farrapona on Saturday, a day of observation between favorites.
Thibaut Pinot's usual mountain lieutenant won the sprint against his last breakaway companion, the Spaniard Marc Soler.
"I gave a cry of relief because it had been a few days that I had pain in the legs", breathed David Gaudu, in the season marred by an injury to the sacrum after his fall on the first day of the Great Loop, a "bad Tour de France".
"We have been in a bit of trouble, the group of climbers, for three months," admitted the 24-year-old Breton with the smile found on Saturday.
He hangs on his record for the stage of this 75th Tour of Spain which had the most elevation gain (around 4,600 meters) ... without causing gaps among the contenders for the general classification, still dominated by the Slovenian Primoz Roglic for a few hundredths ahead of Richard Carapaz.
David Gaudu got out of the peloton in the second ascent of the day, the Alto de la Colladona (7km at 6.5%), to join a large group of breakaway riders on the descent.
Among the last runaways of the day, he was the only one capable of responding to the attack of Movistar climber Marc Soler, five kilometers from the finish at the top of the Alto de La Farrapona (16.5 km to 6 , 2% average slope).
The two men got along until the last 500 meters where the French, winner of the Tour de l'Avenir 2016 in front of a certain Egan Bernal, eclipsed Soler.
"When Marc Soler attacked me 500 meters from the finish, I saw that with the headwind he sat down quite quickly. I waited for the last 150 meters and I said to myself + we go there, we give everything +. And in the end, I saw that he was off the hook and that it was won so it was only happiness ", relishes the French.
Appointed leader of Groupama-FDJ at the start of the Vuelta, and even more since Thibaut Pinot threw in the towel before the 3rd stage, David Gaudu signed the third success of his career.
Undoubtedly the most prestigious in front of his stage victories in the Tour de Romandie (2019) and the Tour de l'Ain 2017.
Intimidated perhaps by the vertiginous percentages of Angliru (passage to 23.5%) on Sunday and the fear of KO, the favorites were satisfied with a round of observation.
In the end, it was even the fictitious start that was the most animated for them on Saturday, delayed by a few minutes due to an Ineos protest against the decisions of the race jury the day before.
In question: the inclusion of a break of three seconds in the final, to the benefit of Primoz Roglic.
Deprived of the red leader's jersey for the benefit of the Slovenian, Richard Carapaz and the British team showed their dissatisfaction with Chris Froome in the role of leader.
© 2020 AFP