It was the first time since 1878 that the Vuelta had ridden through the politically-troubled Basque region, and the first good ride Anton had turned in since the start of the Vuelta.
"Just being in the break today in front of these fans and my family would have been worth the effort, even if I hadn't won," Anton told Cyclingnews.com. "I felt goose bumps when we entered the Basque Country."
Anton joined the first successful break of the day, 35 km into the 159-km stage. He stayed with this group until the final 20 km, when he headed off on his own up the final climb of the day. The Basque rider pushed through the sea of howling fans, crested the climb with 27 seconds, and stretched his lead to 41 seconds by the finish line.
Fight for the Red Jersey
Sky’s Chris Froome started the stage down 13 seconds to Geox’s Juan Jose Cobo; the only chance he had to gain that back was to have his team drive the pace so hard up the first three climbs climbs that Geox and Cobo wore out so Froome could attack on the final climb.
The only drawback was that Geox was stronger than Sky; when Bradley Wiggins, Sky’s final rider, came tot the front up the Cat 2 Alto de Vivero, he couldn’t manage an all-out driving pace.
Froome help his attack until the final two kilometers of the climb, but Cobo covered him immediately. The Sky rider tires again, with the same result.
The pair crossed the line together; the top of the General Classification remained unchanged.
Chris Froome has one more chance to gain 13 seconds: the final climb of Stage 20, the Cat 1 Puerto de Urkiola. Only 5.5 km long, this climb probably doesn’t present enough of a challenge to crack Cobo.
To make matters worse for Sky, the final climb is followed by 47 kilometers of flat road—plenty of time for Geox to pull their man back into the lead. Froome’s only other chance would be to outsprint Cobo, but he would need to win by six seconds—a lifetime, in a sprint finish.
First place carries a 20-second time bonus, but second carries 12. Of course, none of that matters if a breakaway takes the time bonuses, which is the most likely outcome.
The race is never over until it is over, but barring a most unlikely disaster, Juan Jose Cobo will wear the red jersey into Madrid on Sunday.
