Vuelta a Espana: Mads Pedersen takes hattrick of wins as sprinters thrive on anti-climatic day

Stage 19 was a day where the breakaway and the GC riders had the opportunity to explode the race, but the riders preferred to stay calm and in the peloton. A bunch sprint decided the outcome of the day, and Mads Pedersen stormed to his third win in the race.

The day seemed to be one where the breakaway could succeed with certainty, but the efforts to control the breakaway early in the day saw only a trio go up the road with Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates), Ander Okamika (Burgos-BH) and Jonathan Caicedo (EF Education-EasyPost). Some more riders tried to jump across to the front, but without success.

Trek - Segafredo, with an unexpected opportunity to go for another stage win, has controlled the pace throughout the first half of the stage. Into the final ascent Bahrain - Victorious picked up the pace to try and reduce the bunch and see Fred Wright within better chances of winning, however the pace wasn't pushed hard enough to cause big casualties within the peloton.

Movistar Team accelerated towards the summit, but the race calmed down in the descent once again with Trek keeping everything in order. It was a controlled leadout until the final kilometer where Miles Scotson launched an early bid to the line, almost surprising. Pedersen managed to launch his sprint first however, and he had the speed to keep the lead all the way to the line, beating Fred Wright and Gianni Vermeersch who completed the podium.