Two weeks into the Vuelta a España and ten days into his management of the race, Ben O’Connor doesn’t seem like unduly burdened by the crimson jersey on his again. True, Primož Roglič has steadily shrunk his benefit from virtually 5 minutes to only over one, however O’Connor has by no means appeared fazed by the calls for of his place.
The polemic over Decathlon-AG2R’s blocking manoeuvre on stage 11 was shrugged off amiably. “This was excuse to do it,” he smiled after deleting his Twitter account. His worst day, on the Puerto de Ancares, was absorbed swiftly. “I used to be fairly cooked,” he confessed afterwards. On Sunday, he delivered a defiant show at Cuitu Negru to defend his crimson jersey when many anticipated he would lose it. “I am going to maintain it for so long as I can,” he mentioned on the end.
It has, by any measure, been a tumultuous couple of weeks in O’Connor’s biking life, however he stored the rigours of Vuelta management in perspective when he spoke with reporters in a video name on Monday’s relaxation day.
“I don’t assume the fatigue is any completely different at this level,” O’Connor mentioned. “To be sincere, you’re mentally much more fried on the Tour de France than you’re on the Vuelta a España or the Giro d’Italia. There are different parts in play in different Grand Excursions that make you drained. Right here, for instance, it’s the relentless stage after stage the place it’s at all times climbing. That isn’t so unhealthy for me, however I do take pleasure in a pleasant simple dash day each now and again…”
O’Connor caught a break of a special variety at Cuitu Negru on Sunday afternoon, the place he misplaced 38 seconds to Roglič on the ultimate climb solely to be handed again greater than half of that concession after the stage. The commissaires gave Roglič a 20-second penalty for drafting behind his Purple Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe staff automotive as he chased again on after a motorcycle change, that means that O’Connor carries a lead of 1:03 over his closest rival into the ultimate week.
“Nicely, I didn’t lose one other 20 seconds, just about,” O’Connor mentioned on Monday. “I suppose the penalty was dealt out as they noticed match. I didn’t even know he’d modified bikes, to be truthful, I didn’t go searching or know. A 20-second benefit again to me is useful, that’s for certain, however you possibly can assure tomorrow he’s going to go all in and attempt to get that point again.”
Lagos de Covadonga
The Vuelta resumes in Asturias on Tuesday with probably the most demanding levels of your complete race. Lagos de Covadonga is the Vuelta’s most sacred website, and it’s additionally been fertile terrain for Roglič, who seized the crimson jersey from Odd Christian Eiking within the third week of the race in 2021. There are different summit finishes to comply with at Moncalvillo and Picón Blanco, however Lagos de Covadonga is likely to be the hardest check of O’Connor’s mettle.
“I feel what I must do is be at my best possible tomorrow. That’s one of many most important ones,” O’Connor mentioned when requested what he wanted to do to win this Vuelta. “Saturday [to Picón Blanco] is a stage that fits me extra so, perhaps probably the most out of the entire race. However tomorrow is an important day to be good.
“It’s a fairly laborious day, however to be sincere I haven’t actually considered the way it’s going to play out. I’m simply interested by how we’re going to strategy the race and that’s type of about it to be sincere.”
It stays to be seen what supporting forged O’Connor could have by his aspect in Tuesday’s finale after Felix Gall’s surprising travails on Sunday. The Austrian, who was apparently given the liberty to not await O’Connor on the Ancares two days beforehand, dropped from eighth to twenty first general after coming in additional than 25 minutes down at Cuitu Negru. “He didn’t have good legs, merely,” mentioned directeur sportif Cyril Dessel.
O’Connor, for his half, restricted his losses effectively at Cuitu Negru, significantly given how he had struggled 48 hours earlier. “I used to be simply cooked at that second,” he defined of his feedback after his travails at Puerto de Ancares. “However in case you’re correctly cooked, then you definately explode. Friday was somewhat bit tough, it positively may have been higher. However it wasn’t that I used to be saying I used to be completely fried and needed to parachute out.”
Cuitu Negru augured effectively for his powers of restoration. And whereas O’Connor repeated on Monday that his overriding goal for this Vuelta is solely a podium end in Madrid, his disappointment at dropping floor to Roglič and Enric Mas within the ultimate kilometres of stage 15 Negru instructed one other story. He’s not able to exit the stage simply but.
“The time loss at all times hurts, and I used to be a bit irritated with that,” O’Connor mentioned. “However ultimately, it’s particular to have this jersey.”
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