Second place for Wellens in Vuelta a Andalucía opener

After Tadej Pogačar’s win on the first summit finish at the UAE Tour, the racing action did not slow down on Wednesday afternoon, not for UAE Team Emirates-XRG at least.

There were a collection of stinging attacks thrown on the opening day at the Vuelta a Andalucía, which saw Tim Wellens, Pavel Sivakov and Marc Soler finish second, third and fourth, respectively, with Pablo Torres ending the day in the young rider’s jersey.

It was all action on an undulating stage 1, with UAE Team Emirates-XRG fielding a side of strong climbers that was unfortunately without Vegard Stake Laengen at the start. The Norwegian developed a fever overnight and was not in condition to begin the race.

Nonetheless, his teammates were in attacking spirits in Spain, with Sivakov the first to make a move once the breakaway of the day had disintegrated. With just Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) alone out front, the Frenchman attacked from the peloton and combined with Guillermo Thomas Silva (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), who had been dropped from the break. The pair found a mutual understanding and pressed on for the best part of 15km before Sivakov decided to venture on alone.

With the race in tatters thanks to Sivakov’s aggression and Tom Pidcock’s (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) attempt to force a response behind, it was down to the final categorised climb of Alto de Frigiliana to dictate how the finale of the day would unfold. Sensing that Sivakov would soon catch the leader on the road, Leknessund, Maxim Van Gils of Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe attacked from the peloton and bridged across to the Frenchman, with Wellens soon following suit.

As Sivakov and Wellens flanked Van Gils, Leknessund could stand the pace no longer and fell away from the front, leaving just the trio of riders at the head of the race. From this point on, the narrative of the day had emerged, with Van Gils likely to be favoured in the uphill sprint to the line in Cueva de Nerja. As such, it was down to Wellens and Sivakov to get creative, as their teammates Soler, Torres and Igor Arrieta tracked the attacks of those behind.

For those watching at home, the final few kilometres would prove enthralling, as Wellens and Sivakov threw everything but the kitchen sink at Van Gils in an effort to distance the young Belgian. Although the terrain did not favour an escapee, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG duo would make use of their racecraft to provide some late entertainment. Sivakov was the first to make a move and look to tire the legs of Van Gils, but Wellens had a trick or two up his sleeve.

Sensing an opportunity, the wily Belgian twice used a roundabout to attack on the right-hand side, as Sivakov and Van Gils proceeded on the left. On both occasions, Wellens was able to establish a small gap as Van Gils looked to get back on terms, but unfortunately it was not to be for the former winner of this race. As the final kick to the line approached, the trio reunited and it became apparent that only an uphill sprint would decide the day’s winner.

There would be no celebration for the entertainer Wellens, who came over the line just behind stage winner Van Gils, whilst Sivakov mopped up third place behind. Shortly thereafter, Soler made the most of his strong form to sprint to fourth place, with Arrieta rounding out a strong opening day for UAE Team Emirates-XRG in ninth.

Wellens heads into stage 2 level on time with Van Gils in second, as Sivakov sits just seven seconds shy in third. The opening stage of the Volta ao Algarve, meanwhile, was annulled, with late confusion splitting the peloton in half and resulting in a chaotic end to proceedings. Stage 2 will see our riders in Portugal tackle the summit finish of Alto da Foia.

Wellens: “We wanted to make it a hard stage. We went à bloc with Julius [Johansen] and then Igor [Arrieta] attacked, before Pavel [Sivakov], Marc [Soler] and Pablo [Torres] also made a move. In the end, Pavel went away and I joined him along with Van Gils, when we became a three.

“We were not thinking about the general classification but about the stage win, which we really wanted. We attacked many times but to be honest, Van Gils was the strongest and he deserved the victory. Now we have to take a look at GC and over the next days, do everything in our power to make Van Gils’ life as hard as possible.”

Vuelta a Andalucía stage 1 results

1. Maxim Van Gils (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) 4:19:23

2. Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

9. Igor Arrieta (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +1’38”

Vuelta a Andalucía general classification after stage 1

1. Maxim Van Gils (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) 4:19:23

2. Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

9. Igor Arrieta (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +1’38”