"The plan was to make some chaos on the intermediate sprint" - Nico Denz reveals that he was prepared for such scenario

It wasn't your typical run of the mill final grand tour stage where riders slowly roll to the line, only racing in the final kilometers. In the streets of Madrid, a strong group including Remco Evenepoel, Kaden Groves or Filippo Ganna made their move. And Nico Denz was there as well to eventually finish third.

"The plan was to make some chaos with Lenny," Denz tells Eurosport. "Our plan was to go after the intermediate sprint. We went for it. We wanted to give this Vuelta a proper ending, but when some very strong riders crossed and it was clear that we could make it, I tried to spare myself a bit. Lennard gave everything to keep the gap."

"I waited a bit too long in the sprint. I was also a bit too far, but losing against Kaden and Ganna is nothing to be ashamed of. I'm quite happy with this third place. It's cool to do a show like that together with Lenny."

Denz did not expect that he would achieve podium in the final stage. "The only stage that I thought might suit me was stage 15. I was good, but it turned out to be more difficult than expected. But today was really fun. It's fun to race like this. It was not easy to follow: it was a leading group of champions. I am proud that I was there."