Vuelta King of the Mountain leader Buitrago knows which two stages he needs to win to hold off Van Aert and Mas

With the final week of the Vuelta a España approaching, there’s still plenty of suspense in several classifications. Wout van Aert’s green jersey seems all but certain, but the Belgian rider from Visma | Lease a Bike also has his sights set on the mountains classification. Here, he trails Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) by 29 points.

While Van Aert won Sunday’s sweltering stage around Córdoba, Buitrago finished at the back of the pack. The Colombian climber expended a lot of energy on Saturday during the stage to Sierra de la Pandera, in which he ultimately finished second behind Tudor rider Marco Brenner. Buitrago did, however, earn a lot of mountain points on that stage.

"I'm really glad tomorrow is a rest day," Buitrago said on Sunday afternoon. "Personally, I really need it to recharge for the final week." The Bahrain Victorious rider knows he has another tough week ahead of him.

"I don't think a 29-point lead is ever enough, knowing how much is still up for grabs. There are two crucial stages in this Vuelta, and Saturday's stage could be worth nearly 50 points," he says, referring to the mountain stages in the final week.

So what’s Buitrago’s game plan? “We need to recover well, ride smart, and defend our position until the end. I’m definitely aiming for a stage win, and I’m certainly going to give it another shot this final week. A stage win would be the icing on the cake, especially with this jersey,” concludes the polka-dot jersey wearer.

In a heat-shortened stage 15 of the Vuelta a España, Visma | Lease a Bike controlled the 110 km race, and Wout van Aert won a five-man sprint in Córdoba, delivering the team’s fifth stage victory.

Van Aert, who also won in Córdoba two years ago, surprised rivals by attacking at the intermediate sprint rather than leading out green-jersey holder Matthew Brennan.

Joined by Thibau Nys, Ramses Debruyne, Andreas Leknessund, and Alessandro Romele, he kept the break together to finish it off in the sprint, praising his teammates and the team’s opportunistic racing. Read more