Yates and Bernal wrap up strong Vuelta finishes

05 Sep 2021

Yates and Bernal wrap up strong Vuelta finishes

Vuelta a Espana - Stage 21» Padrón › Santiago de Compostela ITT, 33.8km

Adam Yates and Egan Bernal completed the 2021 Vuelta a Espana with strong finishes of fourth and sixth place overall.
 
Yates began the final day time trial with an outside shot at a podium, and set off quickly to put pressure on rival Jack Haig. Despite putting 25 seconds into Haig in the opening kilometres, the Brit was eventually forced to settle for a creditable fourth, and a performance that saw him battling deep into the final week.
 
Bernal began the day comfortable in his GC position, with the Giro winner taking another strong Grand Tour finish in the same season with sixth.
 
Primoz Roglic completed his overall victory in Spain with a stage win on the final day, with Bernal the best placed Grenadier in sixth across the 33.8-kilometre course.
 
Pavel Sivakov and Salvatore Puccio also crossed the line in Santiago de Compostela after strong and consistent races, with Tom Pidcock also taking in the special moment of completing his first Grand Tour.
 
Sadly three Grenadiers were absent at the end of the three weeks, with Richard Carapaz, Jhonatan Narvaez and Dylan van Baarle forced to abandon La Vuelta earlier in the race.
null

Reaction

- Adam Yates

"I went out at the beginning quite hard. But to be honest it was the pace that I needed to do to try and move up onto the podium. Then in the second half I suffered like I’ve never suffered before. It wasn’t to be but I gave it my best. That’s all you can hope for.
 
"We had some good days and we had some bad days. I think we raced quite well as a team. For me it’s my first Grand Tour with my new team. I enjoyed every moment. Not every day was perfect but it’s something to build on for next year and the years after that."

- Egan Bernal

"I learned about suffering. I think I’ve suffered a lot in this Vuelta but at the same time I enjoyed it a lot. I think in every race you learn something and I hope it will be good for next year. 

"I'm really happy for Primoz. For sure he deserves it."
Overall standings

1. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 83:55:29
2. Enric Mas (Movistar Team) +4'42''
3. Jack Haig (Bahrain Victorious) +7'40''
4. Adam Yates (INEOS Grenadiers) +9'06"
5. Gino Mader (Bahrain Victorious) +11'33"
6. Egan Bernal (INEOS Grenadiers) +13'27''
35. Pavel Sivakov
67. Tom Pidcock
98. Salvatore Puccio