Gaudu unaware of any wrongdoing after Vingegaard's claim: "I was just riding my own climb"

Gaudu held strong through the high pace set by Lidl-Trek and launched his decisive move in the final meters, one that Pedersen and the others had no answer to.

“This is a surprise. I was still thinking on the team bus, ‘this one’s for Pedersen.’ But my teammates, like Stefan Küng, told me I also have a punch and that I could win today. They did a great job keeping me near the front all day, and I’m incredibly happy and proud to have finished it off.”

After the stage, Vingegaard expressed frustration about Gaudu’s “divebomb” move in the final corner. But Gaudu brushed it off: “Was it intentional to take the inside line? Not really. I was just riding my own climb until Pedersen launched with 250 meters to go. After that, I just went all-in to the finish.”

Gaudu's victory in Ceres marks his most beautiful win in what has otherwise been a rough 2025 season. "It’s been a really difficult year. So there are a lot of emotions right now. This is the best possible start to the Vuelta we could have imagined."

"I haven’t won a World Tour race since the Critérium du Dauphiné in 2022, where I beat Wout van Aert. And now we can add Mads to that list, in a sprint, no less! It might be a bit anecdotal, but there’s a lot of positive to take from this," said Gaudu, who now sits second in the overall classification.