The stage from Sant Joan de les Abadesses toward the summit of Port Ainé would not have been out of place in the final week of a grand tour. The stage, which perhaps deserved the title of queen stage, took the peloton over three hard climbs. Steven Kruijswijk tried to be in the early breakaway, but the Dutchman's efforts proved in vain.

On the final climb, Kuss decided to attack after Pogacar rode off. Together with Mikel Landa, the winner of the most recent Vuelta a España tried to close the gap to the Slovenian, but the attempts did not succeed. In the final hundreds of meters, Kuss was outpaced by a pair from Bahrain - Victorious, so the American eventually had to settle for fifth place. Thanks in part to his attractive riding, Kuss moved up two places in the overall ranking, finding himself in seventh place now.

"This result satisfies me quite well," Kuss says after the race. "It's especially the way we achieved it that pleases me. With the team, we took the initiative today. Everyone contributed, and it seemed like we were all on the same page. Personally, I felt good on the final climb. That's why I have a positive feeling about today. Now, the focus shifts to the upcoming days, where we will assess what is still possible in terms of the overall standings."

Sports director Frans Maassen also likes to look foward. "Today was a pretty good day for the team. Pogacar was by far the best, but behind him a lot of guys are evenly matched. That offers possibilities for the coming days. After yesterday's slightly lesser day we can now look up again," Maassen stated.