Mikel Landa believes Ben O'Connor's lead is not bullet-proof: "It's going to be a difficult to take time off him, but it's not impossible"
Cycling
Mikel Landa arrived at the finish line completely smashed. The Soudal - Quick-Step leader commented after the finish that Ben O'Connor had gone very strong and that his team couldn't do anything else even though they didn't have anyone pull at the front of the bunch at any point of the stage.
However, thinking about what may happen between now and the end of the Vuelta, he is very clear that it is not lost and that the Australian has not won it despite his display today:
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"The truth is that he has been very strong. We couldn't do more. Well, that's how it was, there's still a lot of Vuelta to go, now it's time to get back to him. Why not, he's been close to the podium other times, it's going to be a difficult rider to take time off him, but it's not impossible."
After this victory, Ben O'Connor takes the lead in the Vuelta a Espana classification with overwhelming lead of nearly five minutes on Primoz Roglic and Joao Almeida and more than five minutes on Enric Mas. Mikel Landa drops out of the top 10 and is now 12th, 5:49 behind the Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale rider.
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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