Brennan cruises to fourth Vuelta stage win thanks to masterful Van Aert lead out

The sixteenth stage of the Vuelta a España was won by Matthew Brennan. The Briton from Visma | Lease a Bike triumphed in the first stage after the rest day. Wout van Aert's lead-out was once again perfect, after which Brennan snatched his fourth stage victory with ease.

The rest day in Spain was well-deserved. The second week had really taken its toll, with some very tough stages, but above all the heat. It was sweltering, and the fifteenth stage was even shortened. We’re continuing with 150 riders, and it looks as though the sprinters are set to take centre stage in the Vuelta. The route towards La Rábida may well be the flattest one covered so far.

But ‘flat’ means something different in Spain than it does elsewhere. There are still nearly 2,000 metres of climbing on the route, although most of that is at the start. Once past the halfway point, the riders no longer need to worry about hills, making a sprint a realistic option. And so all eyes are on Visma | Lease a Bike, with Matthew Brennan as the top favourite.

Nevertheless, the hills at the start caused some uncertainty. Would the challengers seize the opportunity to put the Dutch team under pressure early on? It was possible, but ultimately proved unrealistic. The breakaway consisted of five riders, led by the energetic Kevin Vermaerke (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), who was joined by Valentin Madouas (Groupama-FDJ), Simon Dalby (Uno-X Mobility), Jasha Sütterlin (Jayco AlUla) and Roland Thalmann (Tudor).

However, those riders weren’t given much room. Visma | Lease a Bike quickly took charge to ensure they didn’t get too far ahead. They set a fast pace in the hilly opening stage, and the peloton was often strung out in a single line. With a bit of wind here and there, it sometimes even broke up briefly, but the gap was quickly closed. There was no sign of a echelon stage (yet).

Incidentally, the heat persisted in Spain. It wasn’t quite as sweltering as in Córdoba, but it was certainly warm. The organisers had therefore relaxed the feed zone rules slightly. This suited the riders well, as they could cool off at the support car at any time. However, it wasn’t clear whether the heat had anything to do with Timo Roosen (Picnic PostNL) pulling out.

In the heat, things remained relatively calm. Of course, the pace was high, but there were no wild antics. The front-runners saw their lead steadily dwindle, but the peloton let them struggle on for a while longer. Visma | Lease a Bike also received support from Cofidis (for Bryan Coquard) and Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe (for Jordi Meeus).

With about 25 kilometers to go, the breakaway riders were caught, thanks to the now blistering pace in the peloton. The wind caused some unrest, and it was Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe that stretched the peloton out into a long line. However, there was never enough wind for a real echelon formation. Magnus Cort (Uno-X Mobility) and Alberto Dainese (Soudal Quick-Step) had been caught off guard but managed to rejoin the group.

And so it ended up being 'just' a sprint after all. Visma | Lease a Bike had to improvise a bit in the lead-out without Christophe Laporte, but with teams like Soudal Quick-Step and Uno-X Mobility, they didn't have to take all the responsibility. Van Aert then towed Brennan along, after which it was child's play for the Brit, who simply triumphed.

1. Matthew Brennan