THE Back to Spain penalized 20 seconds in the general classification for Primoz Roglic after the queen stage, which ended in Cuitu Negru. The organization imposed a penalty on the Slovenian for taking advantage of the wake of his team car, Red Bull-Bora, to rejoin the peloton after changing bikes before starting the final climb. Thus, with the updated times, the gap between O’Connor and Roglic, which had been further reduced by the Slovenian during stage 15, is now 1’03”.
Before tackling the last climb of the day, that of the difficult Cuitu Negru pass, Roglic He stopped with two companions to wait for the car, to take another bike specially prepared for the climb. They lost about half a minute to the peloton and to reduce it, they took advantage of the wake of the team car.
Therefore, from the Knees considered that, since it was not a breakdown or an accident, they had made excessive use of what is called tracking car It’s simply a matter of standing behind the car to take advantage of the wake and thus prevent the wind from slowing the rider down or standing to the side and holding on to it to be towed.
Logically, the second case is considered more serious and can result in expulsion. Without going any further, in 2015, Nibali for having done it in a single stage, after suffering a fall and leaving the peloton for a minute and a half. He wanted to reduce the difference and the organization was energetic in its sanction.
Now the 20 seconds for Roglic they give more air to a O’Connor who sees how the difference he had of almost five minutes disappears. After the Cuitu Negru stage, the cyclist of Decathlon-AG2R He had a 43-second lead over the Slovenian in the general classification, who had once again beaten him by 38 seconds at the finish. However, with the penalty imposed on the triple Vuelta champion, the gap between the two was once again over a minute, at 1’03”.
The queen stage was marked by Roglic’s attack on the group of favourites, but above all by a spectacular Pablo CastrilloThe Spaniard had just won in Manzaneda and, against all expectations, won the stage which ended in Black Cooked Asturian. In a final kilometer where he fought at all costs with Vlasov, he managed to break the Russian with a real demonstration of strength and resistance to win his second stage of this Vuelta.
