The battle for the breakaway started immediately after the start. On the successive climbs, several groups formed, and eventually a large group managed to get clear. Armirail was attentive and made it into the group that moved clear at the front. The Frenchman then spent a large part of the day in the breakaway, playing an important role for Team Visma | Lease a Bike.

With the Alto de Aitana approaching, the gap to the remaining breakaway riders gradually decreased. On the 22-kilometer final climb, the pace in the group of favorites increased further. Armirail was eventually unable to stay with the best climbers, after having spent many kilometers in the breakaway.

It was also a tough finale for Kuss. The American remained in the group of GC riders for a long time, but had to let the best riders go in the final part of the climb. He eventually finished in eleventh place, once again finishing close to the favourites. “It was a very hard stage, but the guys did a great job of supporting me all the way to the final climb,” Kuss said afterwards. “Towards the top I had to find my own rhythm and limit the damage, but I’m happy with my feelings considering the hard crash the day before,” Kuss concluded.