30 Mar 2019
Bernal third ahead of Catalunya finale
Related riders
Egan Bernal
Volta a Catalunya – Stage six: Valls – Vila-Seca, 169.1km
Egan Bernal was alert on a day for the fast men to retain his podium position on the penultimate stage at the Volta a Catalunya.
The stage held a sting in the tail along the coast as Movistar put the power down in the final 10 kilometres, stringing out the bunch in the wind and causing splits in the peloton.
Bernal remained well positioned and received some strong help from Pavel Sivakov in the closing stages. Eventually crossing the line in 11th, alert riding ensured the Colombian heads into the final day in Barcelona in third place overall.
Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) was present to retain the overall lead, with Bernal just 17 seconds back on his compatriot, and still just three seconds behind Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott).
With a peloton determined to make sure they weren’t bested for a third time by the break, the day’s quartet were kept on a tight leash for much of the stage. With 50km to go Team Sky came to the fore briefly, helping to position Bernal on the Coll d’Alforja.
Reaction
- Xabier Zandio
"Historically this final stage is a complicated one but it doesn't change things too much on the GC. But tomorrow the weather forecast is not looking too good. So until the last finish line the race is on. It's a hard stage and we'll try to do what we can.
"After two hard mountain stages we've seen small gaps on stages that are much harder than tomorrow. Tomorrow the teams of each GC rider will help a lot more so it will be hard to shake things up. We have to be patient on the laps and hopefully try to find the right moment to do something."
- Xabier Zandio
"Historically this final stage is a complicated one but it doesn't change things too much on the GC. But tomorrow the weather forecast is not looking too good. So until the last finish line the race is on. It's a hard stage and we'll try to do what we can.
"After two hard mountain stages we've seen small gaps on stages that are much harder than tomorrow. Tomorrow the teams of each GC rider will help a lot more so it will be hard to shake things up. We have to be patient on the laps and hopefully try to find the right moment to do something."
What’s Next?
The traditional finishing circuit around Montjuic in Barcelona is anything but a procession. A tough, undulating course often sees the race split to pieces and encourages last gasp attacks. Bernal will not have fond memories of the stage, having crashed out of a podium position last season.
The traditional finishing circuit around Montjuic in Barcelona is anything but a procession. A tough, undulating course often sees the race split to pieces and encourages last gasp attacks. Bernal will not have fond memories of the stage, having crashed out of a podium position last season.
Stage six result:
1. Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) 3:56:36
2. Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Merida) s.t.
3. Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott)
4. Patrick Bevin (CCC Team)
5. Mikel Aristi (Euskadi Basque Country)
11. Egan Bernal (Team Sky)
Overall standings:
1. Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) 25:53:41
2. Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) +14"
3. Egan Bernal (Team Sky) +17"
4. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) +25"
5. Dan Martin (UAE-Team Emirates) +46"
Overall standings:
1. Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana) 25:53:41
2. Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) +14"
3. Egan Bernal (Team Sky) +17"
4. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) +25"
5. Dan Martin (UAE-Team Emirates) +46"
