Sepp Kuss, Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard's strong lieutenant at Jumbo-Visma, recovers the leader's tunic. Probably for a simple interim, the time that one of the cadors of the race does not get his teeth. Martinez slipped to 13th position, at one minute and 10 sec.
But after these 165 km between Dénia and Xorret de Cati, in the hinterland of Alicante, the Vuelta 2023 now knows its "great of Spain".
The last survivors of a river breakaway of thirty riders were swallowed without a glance in the last ascent of the day, the Xorret de Cati, a monster of only 4 km but with passages at more than 20 pc.
The candidates for the final victory climbed it almost neck and neck. Evenepoel, first, the outgoing winner, did better than resist the Jumbo-Visma armada.
At the train, he prevented his opponents from attacking him. But Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard, the winner of the Tour de France, hung on. Just like Enric Mas (Movistar) and Juan Ayuso (UAE), who switched with them to the top, three kilometers from the goal.
American Sepp Kuss new red jersey of the Vuelta at the end of the 8th stage, September 2, 2023 in Xorret de Cati © JOSE JORDAN / AFP
After a brief descent, Roglic sprinted the small group, to which three other riders, including Kuss, had recovered.
After eight stages, and with the bonus game, Evenepoel is sixth overall, 2 min 31 sec behind Kuss. He is seven seconds ahead of Roglic, eleven ahead of Vingegaard and Mas and 21 ahead of Ayuso. In other words, nothing, given the steps that are still looming.
"It's a shame"
But the Belgian phenomenon, for whom only victory is beautiful, was furious at the finish to have been surprised in the sprint, after throwing too far, 300 meters from the goal.
"It's a shame," he repeated several times, assuring that he had been misinformed about the profile of the last kilometer: "I did not know where the line was, I lost a few seconds, I feel a little stupid (...) I controlled well in the climb, Jonas and Primoz were with me but I understood that they did not have the legs, we missed a great victory here," he said, disappointed, at the microphone of Eurosport.
France's Lenny Martinez crosses the finish line of the 8th stage of the Vuelta, on September 2, 2023 in Xorret de Cati © JOSE JORDAN / AFP
At the beginning of the stage, a tough battle from the first difficulty, the Alto de Vall Debo, had allowed a group of 30 men, including Romain Bardet, to extricate themselves from the peloton. But the Groupama FDJ first, who defended Martinez's red jersey, then the Jumbo Visma, never left more than four minutes ahead to the fugitives, recaptured one after the other over the kilometers.
On Sunday, the battle resumes on a stage that is ultimately comparable, at the end of 184 km between Cartagena and Collado de la Cruz de Caravaca. After a first category pass at 124 km from the goal, the finish will be judged at the top of an irregular eight-km climb (2nd category) with daredevils at 20 pc and a terminal ramp at 16 pc. The cadors will find a new opportunity to establish a hierarchy.
Note that Pierre Latour (TotalEnergies), caught in a fall on Friday, abandoned this Saturday.
© 2023 AFP