Ethan Vernon outlined his finishing speed once again at the Vuelta a España on Saturday as he placed second in the northern city of Zaragoza on stage 8.
Having come second on stage 1 and fourth in the race’s sole finish in France three days later, Vernon once again challenged for the victory, which once again went to Jasper Philipsen (ADC), in the Aragonese city.
The British rider crossed the line in third, but was promoted one spot following the relegation of Elia Viviani for deviating from his line in the final meters.
“I’m up there every day for the sprints,” says Vernon. “I felt quite fast today, but it was really chaotic in the last few kilometers. In the end I started too far back. When I went with about four or five hundred to go, I already knew it wasn’t for the win, maybe just top three.
“Then the door opened with a couple hundred to go, but by then I’d already done a 200-meter sprint, so I was at my limit.
“The speed’s definitely there. The issue this year is that I haven’t worked specifically with Jake [Stewart] – we’ve had different programmes. Now we’re starting to work together and learn from each other. I’m hoping it’s a duo we’ll keep building in the future, but the learning has to start somewhere, and I guess it’s here.”