Madrid (AFP)

Stage winner for the 2nd time in this 2021 Tour of Spain on Wednesday over the bump of Valdepeñas de Jaén, Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) will have to wait to reclaim the leader's red jersey, which has remained on Odd Christian's shoulders Eiking (Intermarché - Wanty-Gobert).

At the battle in the last hectometers with his rival Enric Mas (Movistar), Roglic swallowed Magnus Cort Nielsen, last representative of the breakaway of the day, 200 meters from the line, thus offering himself a second stage victory after his inaugural success in the individual time trial during the 1st stage.

Cort Nielsen, already winner of the 6th stage alone in front of Roglic at the top of the Cullera, offered a good resistance to the peloton of the favorites: the Dane sowed his breakaway companions (Joan Bou, Jonathan Lastra, Harm Vanhoucke and Edward Planckaert ) in the last listed bump of the day (Locubin pass, 8 km from the finish).

He was more than a minute ahead at the foot of this difficulty, but he could not face the train of the formation Jumbo-Visma and Roglic at the head of the peloton in the terrible final ramps towards Valdepeñas de Jaén ( which sometimes exceeded 20%), who had crowned Joaquim Rodriguez ten years ago right on the Vuelta 2011.

"It was fair, again. The other day he finished first and I second, I was a bit short. Today was a short but complicated stage, it was still very hot. C It was a nice finish, with big slopes, I knew it was right for me. I suffered a lot, but luckily it ended with a victory for me. Enric Mas was also super strong. But luckily, j 'had a little more juice at the end,' said Roglic on the finish line.

A member of Team Jumbo congratulates the Slovenian Primoz Roglic, after his victory in the 11th stage of the Vuelta, disputed between Antequera and Valdepenas de Jaén, August 25, 2021 JORGE GUERRERO AFP

"It's always good to win, you never know when it's going to end," said the Slovenian.

- Dropouts of Philipsen and Aranburu -

In the last ten kilometers, David De La Cruz (UAE) then Damiano Caruso (Bahrain) tried to extricate themselves from the peloton, without success.

Roglic remains 3rd overall, 1 minute and 56 seconds behind the leader Eiking, 10th in the stage on Wednesday.

Between them slips the French rider of the Cofidis Guillaume Martin, with 58 seconds of disbursement on the Norwegian in the general.

The joy of the Norwegian Odd Christian Eiking, red jersey leader of the Vuelta after the 11th stage, disputed between Antequera and Valdepenas de Jaén, August 25, 2021 JORGE GUERRERO AFP

A stage marked by the abandonment of Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin), double stage winner on this Tour of Spain 2021 who suffered from "slight feverish symptoms" before the start of the 11th stage, and Alex Aranburu (Astana) after his fall the day before.

Mikel Landa (Bahrain), candidate for the final victory, as the day before was dropped from the peloton of favorites, almost saying goodbye to his chances of coronation.

On Thursday, the peloton will find another breakneck stage between Jaén and Cordoba, including the climb to the San Jeronimo pass (3rd category) and another 2nd category bump 20 km from the finish.

© 2021 AFP