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During the race that continues to surprise, stage 17 of la Vuelta a Espana witnessed an unexpected winner and some changes in the general classification.
A determined effort at the front of the peloton by Team Saxo-Tinkoff at 158km, a stretching in the pack and crosswinds conspired to split the peloton into several smaller groups on the road.
The breaks in the peloton saw Orica-GreenEDGE miss out on a potential stage victory, while Nicolas Roche of Team Saxo-Tinkoff leapfrogged Domenico Pozzovivo of AG2R Le Mondiale in to fifth position in the GC.
Both Thibaut Pinot of FDJ.fr and Pozzovivo were caught near the back of the peloton in a third group, and crossed the line one minute and 30 seconds down on Irishman Roche.
Despite the best efforts of those few sprinters left remaining in the lead group after the splits Bauke Mollema of Team Belkin outfox them all within the final 1000 metres to claim the stage victory by a few bike lengths.
The stage podium was rounded out by Edvald Boasson Hagen of Team Sky and Maximiliano Ariel Richeze of Lampre-Merida.
The breakaway of the day consisted of Australia’s own Adam Hansen of Lotto-Belisol and Spaniard Francisco Javier Aramendia of Caja Rural. The two cyclists established the breakaway within three kilometres of the stage’s official commencement and their time advantage reached a maximum of eight minutes before a combination of Lampre-Merida and Orica-GreenEDGE steadily reduced the gap to below two minutes ahead of the crosswinds.
The first intermediate sprint of the stage at Logroño was won by Aramendia, with Hansen second, ahead of Lampre-Merida’s Luca Dodi in the peloton.
The first King of the Mountains sprint on the third Category Alto de Pradilla was won by Hansen, with Aramendia second and Cofidis protecting Nicolas Edet’s jersey by stealing third with Nico Sijmens.
Adam Hansen also won the second KoM sprint on the third Category Alto de Valmala, with Aramendia again second and Nicolas Edet third after attacking, with the result of the second intermediate sprint lost amidst the chaos of the crosswinds and splits occurring in the peloton.
The uncategorised ascent of the Calle Eras de San Francisco saw Diego Ulissi of Lampre-Merida attack, to later be joined by Egoi Martinez of Euskaltel-Euskadi.
However, the move would prove unsuccessful as the group behind chased several attempted breakaway victories down, with the stage looking likely to eventuate in a reduced bunch sprint for the finishing line.
Once again the sprinters were not keen to launch too far from the finishing line, handing the initiative to Mollema.
Attacking out of the wheels of the sprinters, the Dutchman caught the majority of his rivals either unaware or unable to react. Despite the efforts of the sprinters, Mollema held off their advances to claim a hard fought stage victory.
During his post-stage interview, the Belkin rider revealed he had planned to attack from distance during the final kilometre on stage 17.
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