Sleep-inducing stage, blood-pumping finale: Philipsen wins his second Vuelta stage in Zaragoza after an ultimate jump

A team time trial and two mountain stages, it had been the domain of UAE Team Emirates-XRG in recent days, with three stage wins coming courtesy of Jay Vine and Juan Ayuso. But Torstein Træen (Bahrain Victorious) had survived the mountain tests well and managed to keep hold of the red jersey. The flat ride to Zaragoza was expected to be a routine day for him, as it was clearly one for the fast men.

It was a rare flat stage in Spain, and with few sprint opportunities left, possibly not until Madrid, there was little interest in forming a breakaway. The move that did go was a purely Spanish affair: Joan Bou (Caja Rural–Seguros RGA), Sergio Samitier (Cofidis), and José Luis Faura (Burgos–Burpellet BH). The trio was given a maximum gap of around four minutes, but Alpecin-Deceuninck kept them on a tight leash the whole day.

It was, otherwise, a rather uneventful day on the bike. The fatigue from the previous two tough stages still lingered in the peloton’s legs, and with just three riders up the road, the sprinters’ teams knew they’d get their chance. The average speed halfway through the stage was under 38 km/h, though things picked up later on, partly thanks to an intermediate sprint about 40 kilometers from the finish. There, Mads Pedersen (Lidl–Trek) outsprinted Ethan Vernon (Israel–Premier Tech), extending his lead in the points classification.

But the Dane wasn’t just after green, he wanted a stage win. Zaragoza was his target, with the race set to complete a 23-kilometer local circuit. The three Spanish escapees crossed the line there slightly ahead of the pack, but the catch was only a matter of time. Alpecin-Deceuninck and Picnic–PostNL controlled the pace, while Visma | Lease a Bike also moved forward, making sure Jonas Vingegaard stayed well-positioned.

Faura couldn’t hold the pace and dropped out of the breakaway, leaving Bou and Samitier to continue as a duo. Their move was shut down with 17 kilometers to go, and tension in the peloton steadily rose. The narrow, twisting roads made positioning crucial, so GC teams kept their leaders toward the front, crowding the head of the bunch. A short climb 11 kilometers from the finish was surprisingly punchy, but not decisive.

Casper van Uden was clearly eyeing the win, Picnic–PostNL kept him right up front. But other sprint teams weren’t far behind: EF Education–EasyPost (Madis Mihkels), Jayco–AlUla (Anders Foldager), and Intermarché–Wanty (Arne Marit) all moved their men into position. The fight for space became chaotic in the twisty final kilometers.

As often happens, Alpecin-Deceuninck kept their cool. The Belgian squad stayed calm and controlled near the front. Meanwhile, Pedersen once again found himself boxed in during the final 2 kilometers, forced to freelance his way through the sprint. Lotto had a perfect lead-out for Elia Viviani, who looked on track to win. But at the last moment, Philipsen surged past on the inside to snatch the victory.