Second in Vuelta stage 6, Marco Frigo regrets missing Ben O'Connor's winning move: "Otherwise it could have been different"

It was a long wait after Ben O'Connor crossed the finish line as the winner of the sixth stage of the Vuelta a Espana. More than four and half minute behind the Australian, it was eventually Israel - Premier Tech's Marco Frigo, who turned up at the finish in Yunquera to grab a second place on the day.

"It was full throttle from the start," the Italian said afterwards on HBO Max. "On the flat it was already fast, fast, fast. Eventually I got into the leading group. But it was a bit hectic. I tried to stay in front as much as possible, but missed Ben’s attack. Otherwise it could have been different."

In the final 30 km, Frigo went solo in a last attempt to catch the leading rider, O’Connor. Unfortunately, the 24-year-old Italian crashed on one of the descents. He managed to get back up quickly, but the stage win slipped away, and he had to settle for second place.  

"But yes, it was good anyway. Could I have beaten him otherwise? I don’t know. Ben was very strong, hats off to him. But you never know. If you don’t try, you don’t know. We missed the attack. But I’m happy," he concluded.