Stage winner and lead-out Geoffrey Soupe surprises even himself: "Today was actually for Dries van Gestel"

A big surprise in the seventh stage of the Vuelta. Geoffrey Soupe managed to win the bunch sprint, while the Frenchman was supposed to lead out the sprint for his teammate.

"This is incredible. Normally, I wouldn't be riding this Vuelta," a happy Soupe said in the flash interview. "But due to an injury of a teammate, I was able to come. But I never thought I could win."

On the other hand, the 35-year-old Soupe being well positioned at the front in the final straight was not entirely unexpected. "I was supposed to lead out the sprint for Dries van Gestel, but he wasn't there anymore. I was riding at the front, and I was surprised that no one overtook me."

Soupe previously successful with Bouhanni

Although the stage proceeded fairly easily and slowly, the final itself was hectic. "In the lead-up to the sprint, it was very nervous with roundabouts, and the sprint itself was very fast. The wind also played a role."

The TotalEnergies rider, who was still suffering from a virus at the beginning of this grand tour, has now had a taste of winning in a grand tour himself, which he had done previously as a sprint lead-out. "With Bouhanni, I had already won sprints as a lead-out. That's a different skill, but to finish it off myself now... Unbelievable."