In the end, Egan Bernal was the first to reach the eight-kilometre mark, where the official times were recorded. Vingegaard crossed the improvised finish line a little later alongside Sepp Kuss, Matteo Jorgenson, and the other favorites for the general classification. With five stages to go, the Dane still holds a 48-second lead over closest rival João Almeida.
“It’s a shame that this has happened again”, Vingegaard says afterwards, referring to the forced shortening of the stage. “Everyone has a right to protest, but it’s a shame that it has to happen here and in this way and that we can’t finish the race. That should not happen. The team worked well today, and I would have loved to honour their work in the final of the race. It’s a shame that the Spanish cycling fans did not get to see an exciting finale.”
Tomorrow brings another tough stage in Spain. For the tenth time this Vuelta a España, the race will finish uphill, this time on Alto de El Morredero.