The eighth mountain top finish in the Tour of Spain brought the riders towards the flanks of the Alto del Piornal (13km), which was climbed from two different sides in this eighteenth stage.
For the fourth time since the start of the race, Jan Bakelants represented Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux in the front by joining a group of 42 riders. Despite their maximal advantage of eight minutes, not one rider managed to resist to the return of the favorites on the final climb.
Louis Meintjes followed the better riders in the peloton on this rolling climb averaging gradients of five percent. Even though he was distanced a couple of times, he managed to cross the line in fourteenth position, a little more than one minute after the winner. He stays eleventh in the general classification.
« The GC contenders made use of the interesting course to start the battle exceptionally early. I felt good, I did what I could to follow the best climbers in the peloton as long as possible. Despite the long battle, not much has changed in the general classification. I'm looking forward to the next stages. Today was the first of three hard days in a row, with Talavera de la Reina on Friday and Puerto de Navacerrada on Saturday. I'm ready! »
