Ayuso manages to outsmart Romo and wins Vuelta's 12th stage, with Vingegaard maintaining the lead in the red jersey
Vuelta a España: Juan Ayuso Claims Second Stage Win as GC Leaders Prepare for Tough Stage 13
The Vuelta a España is heating up, with the 13th stage looming as one of the toughest of the entire race. This stage will feature the Alto de l'Angliru climb, a brutal ascent with gradients up to 23.5% and an average 9.8% incline over 12.4 kilometers.
The stage 12 ride in Cantabria was more relaxed compared to the previous day's events in the Basque Country. However, the calm was short-lived as Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Javier Romo (Movistar) formed a breakaway pair on the final climb, with Ayuso outsprinting Romo to win the stage. Romo came close to his first Grand Tour stage win but finished as runner-up.
Ayuso's victory marks his second stage win in this year's Vuelta a Espana, and he is now in third place in the overall general classification, 56 seconds behind Jonas Vingegaard. Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) finished the stage safely and retained the overall lead, with a 50-second advantage over Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG).
The GC leaders are holding their fire for stage 13, a 202.7km mountain stage. This stage will feature three category one climbs, including the brutal ascent to the finish at Angliru, which could potentially decide the fate of the race.
Meanwhile, Ayuso heavily criticized the timing of the announcement of his exit from UAE Team Emirates-XRG, which was announced on Monday's rest day. The young rider has expressed his disappointment in the timing of the announcement, which came just as he was making a strong push in the race.
In other news, Brieuc Rolland (Groupama-FDJ) came in third in stage 12, while Ayuso's teammate, Enric Mas, held onto fourth place in the overall general classification.
The stage 12 ride was 144.9km from Laredo to Los Corrales de Buelna. As the race continues to heat up, fans are eagerly awaiting the challenge of stage 13 and the potential for some dramatic twists and turns in the overall standings.
