"I suffered more in the hotseat than on the bike!" - Filippo Ganna survives nervy wait to take bounce back stage win at La Vuelta following Tour de France crash

After a scorching 13-minute effort over the flat streets of Valladolid, Filippo Ganna had only one task left on Stage 18 of the Vuelta a España: wait. And wait he did — for over three tense hours in the hotseat — as one GC contender and time trial specialist after another tried, and failed, to topple the Italian’s blistering benchmark of 13:00 on the shortened 12.2km course.

“I think I suffered more during the last three hours in the hotseat than on the bike,” Ganna laughed after the win in his post-stage comments. “I didn’t find the correct rhythm in the first part, and then in the final part I just pushed — without thinking about numbers or anything.”

The win, INEOS Grenadiers’ third of this year’s Vuelta, was more than just another TT masterclass from Ganna. It marked an emotional comeback after a brutal crash in July’s Tour de France forced him out of the race and cast a shadow over the rest of his season.

“After my big crash in the Tour de France, it has not been easy to be back on the bike,” he said. “Every time I was on the bike, I tried to do my best to be better day by day, to improve my condition.”

Ganna arrived at this Vuelta far from peak form, enduring two punishing weeks in the high mountains — terrain hardly tailored to a rider of his size and skillset. But as the race hit flatter ground in its final week, the Italian seized the opportunity with clinical precision, delivering an average speed of 56.2 km/h that no one else could match.

Riders like Ivo Oliveira, Stefan Küng, and Jay Vine all came close — Vine finishing less than a second behind — but none could dislodge the two-time world champion from his throne. “We arrived today after suffering during the first two weeks of the Vuelta, with a lot of climbs in my legs. It was not easy. I’m really happy and now I’ll see for the last days,” Ganna said.

While the overall GC battle played out behind him — João Almeida clawing back ten seconds on Jonas Vingegaard — it was Ganna’s day in the spotlight, and a reminder of the raw power that has defined his career. “This last week has started really well for us,” he added. “But it’s not done. We have some other days to try to fight for the best.”