"At a certain point it was just dying to the finish" - Wout van Aert disappointed over his Vuelta time trial performance

Wout van Aert stayed three seconds away from taking the red jersey in his Vuelta debut. The Belgian from Visma | Lease a Bike was in the provisional lead after passing the intermediate point, but in the end it was Brandon McNulty and Mathias Vacek who finished ahead of him.

"I'm not really satisfied," Van Aert told media after the stage. "I didn't feel great, it was only good. Too early in the time trial, it started to hurt and it was a long line to the finish, where at a certain point it was dying to the finish. I didn't have the power anymore."

"I still finished well and am still close, but the feeling was not what I had hoped for. It was not great," he indicated. "There was less wind than during the reconnaissance. The last starting spot was the best, but it is a pity that I could not finish it," said Van Aert, who thanked defending champion Sepp Kuss for giving up the last starting spot.

What feeling prevails for Van Aert? "It's a shame that I can't finish it off. But I wouldn't have finished so close if my legs weren't good, so that's a good sign. Of course I was thinking about the red jersey. I want to make another attempt at red in the coming days. So we're trying to go for the sprint. Everything is still open, so that's good," he indicated. "As a team we started very well. But I had hoped for something better."

On the way, the Belgian set the fastest time, but he did not know about it at that moment. "I did hear that it was close, so that only motivated me more. I certainly gave it everything, but I struggled in the last kilometers. And that's where I let it go," he continued. "The option to go for it in the coming days is still open." Another opportunity to dress in red will come in Sunday's stage with finish in Ourém. The following stage to Castelo Branco will be a final shot for the fast men before riders enter mountains.