Alex Aranburu Secures Fifth Place in Bunch Sprint at La Vuelta Stage 2 in Burgos
After yesterday’s strong performance in the individual time trial, Alex Aranburu was determined to fight for bonus seconds in both the intermediate sprint and the main finish to gain time and potentially take the red jersey. Aranburu finished second in the intermediate sprint, earning two bonus seconds, and later achieved an impressive fifth place in the final bunch sprint, won by Belgian rider Jasper Philipsen.
“I started this day with an idea to try to take the red jersey and, thus I was motivated to do a good result in the intermediate sprint and at the finish. The team worked perfectly for me, and I want to say a big thank to all the guys. They provided me with huge support in both sprints. In the intermediate sprint, I was second and took two bonus seconds, so I knew I had to try to finish inside the top 3 in the final of the stage. Well, it was a very fast sprint, and I did all I could, but finished fifth. However, I think this is a really good result for me in such a fast bunch sprint, so I can be happy with this day,” – said Alex Aranburu.
Despite finishing fifth, Aranburu retains his second position in the general classification, which is currently led by Primoz Roglic, yesterday’s stage winner. Aleksandr Vlasov, the team’s GC leader, finished safely in the main group in 17th position, moving up to seventh place in the General Classification.
Stage 3 of La Vuelta will be a challenging mountain stage, taking the peloton to the top of the first category climb Picon Blanco.
La Vuelta, Stage 2. Caleruega – Burgos, 166.7 km.
Stage Top-3: 1. Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Fenix); 2. Fabio Jakobsen (Deceuninck – Quick Step); 3. Michael Matthews (Team BikeExchange).
Astana – Premier Tech stage Top-3: 5. Alex Aranburu; 17. Aleksandr Vlasov; 34. Gorka Izagirre.
Photo credit: @Gettysport
