"The last one is always a special stage" - Enric Mas keen that Itzulia Basque Country will be decided in final day
Cycling
Enric Mas spoke before the third stage of the Itzulia and explained that in the second stage the finish was not easy and that he witnessed live the fall that forced Marc Soler to abandon the race.
"Yesterday was a complicated finish, Marc's fall caught us, from here I want to send him encouragement and I hope that everything is all right," he said, having shed 11 seconds at the finish line. The Movistar Team rider believes that the third stage, today's stage with a very strong finish, may not suit his characteristics, with the very steep ascents on course.
So, after having no options in the first intermediate sprint in the first stage, we'll see if he can be with the favorites today in such an explosive finish: "Today we'll see the route, which seems to be done in a twisty way, we'll see how we get to that finish and if we can be there with them."
He believes that the Itzulia will be played in the final stage next Saturday: "The last one is always a special stage, the one we all know and let's go for these four remaining stages," he concluded. The final day of racing is short but will feature multiple climbs, including tough gradients but also long distances. The Spaniard crashed there last year in a descent, but looks to take revenge in 2023.
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- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling for
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- People see what they want to. I am actually the opposite of your accusation, probably more of a rebel than most of you who don’t get the big picture. The difference is, I don’t go moaning publicly about the consequences of my transgressions, I understand the need for rules and I take my OWN responsibility when deciding to ignore or break them or doing so involuntarily. I will also not hesitate to state my case or argue vehemently when relevant, sometimes it works, sometimes it makes things worse but that’s the price to pay for principles and having character.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Because for you deviated implies the other rider MUST have been made to fall and fail to finish ??? I don’t know if you ride a bike but next time someone carves you up or drives dangerously close, just hold back from those feelings of changing something, reporting or filming or even complaining. Everyone will just say, hey you’re still here undamaged, doesn’t seem like anyone did anything.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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🧗🏻♂️🟢🔴3️⃣ Día muy exigente a la vista en la #Itzulia2023 en tierras guipuzcoanas. Cinco puertos puntuables, y muchos repechos sin categorizar en la parte final, camino de una llegada en ascenso en Amasa-Villabona. Posiblemente, primer día para los favoritos. 📺 @Eurosport_ES /
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