Stage for Mikal Landa, red jersey for Fabio Aru. The Pyrenees upset the classification of the Vuelta, reaping illustrious victims and launching into orbit the Astana duo who in the Giro contended the victory to Alberto Contador to the last. It was foreseeable that in the 138 km of the stage in the mountains surrounding Andorra, five Gpm with the final ascent in Cortals d'Encamp, the selection would have been tough, indeed very tough. But no one could have imagined Chris Froome collapsing, victim of a fall on the descent of the first col, courageously riding up to the finish line, reached with difficulty with a delay that practically puts him out of contention: over 7 minutes from Aru and many doubts whether to continue or not. Even Quintana, due to a fever that has accompanied him for a few days, couldn't stand the fatigue on his favorite terrain. Less brilliant than usual also the other co-leader of Movistar, Alejandro Valverde, who crashed when Aru sprinted.
Until halfway through the penultimate pass, the Col de la Gallina with its tremendous slopes, the Sardinian had remained in the group led by the Sky men who didn't force the pace – there were riders out in the standings ahead on the breakaway – in an attempt to mask the precarious conditions of Froome sore knee. Aru's shot disrupted Team Sky's plan: the first to lose his wheels was Froome himself, but Quintana, Valverde and Rodriguez would also have gladly done without the shock caused by the Knight of the Four Moors. Only Purito, aided by Dani Moreno managed to limit the damage by finishing fifth at 1'59 from Landa and 43” (rebate in favor of the second included) from Aru. The Spaniard from Katusha remains in second place in the standings, 27” behind the Italian. Third, at 30” is Dumoulin, the former red jersey who with Chaves is the great revelation of this Vuelta. The Dutchman, who defended himself well in the Pyrenees arriving ninth together with Chaves himself at 2'59” behind Landa, a specialist in races against the clock, has the Burgos time trial on his side: if he doesn't get ahead of him on the next mountains, he stays a very uncomfortable customer for Aru and for those who want to win this Vuelta. Valverde, 13th more than 3 minutes from Landa, slipped to sixth place in the general classification even if the gap from the red jersey – 1'56” – is not prohibitive. Quintana did worse than him, as he suffered a delay of 4'19” from Landa. The Colombian condor, rather disheartened, remains in the top ten, ninth, but is now more than 4 minutes away from Aru.
For Astana, after Nibali's tragicomic exit from the Vuelta, a day to remember even if the tactics adopted in the race by the Kazakh team raised some perplexities: one wonders with what advantage in the standings Aru would restart today if Landa waited in the last 4 km of the final ramp. Not so much for the bonus of 10 seconds for the first, because Landa deserved the stage victory, a top-class grimpeur who is moreover favored by an unexpectedly disastrous ranking so far, but for the positive synergies that are created as a couple by being able rely on a partner who gives regular changes. But from what we have seen in the Pyrenean plateau, Aru appears head and shoulders above the others. If he is not yet the master of the Vuelta, from today he is the most authoritative candidate to win it. Nibali too, in his palmarès of big names in the great stage races, began in 2010 to hit the Vuelta before triumphing in the Giro and the Tour.
