The battle for the day’s breakaway erupted from Santo Domingo de Silos. In the end eight riders managed to remain in the spotlight all day with a maximum lead of nine minutes. Team Jumbo-Visma kept their leader well out of the wind and controlled almost the entire stage. The peloton allowed the leading group to go for the day’s victory, after which the red leader’s jersey also changed shoulders.

“It went fine on the road and I am satisfied”, Roglic said. “There was a lot of wind on the climb, which even made it a bit cold. Especially after the heat of the last days it took some getting used to. The fact that we have lost the jersey is actually good for us. It was a steep and tough climb, but the result does not say much. There are still many tough stages to come.”

“Primoz had a good day, Sepp on the other hand a much weaker one”, sports director Grischa Niermann said. “In the general classification we are where we want to be. It was a good day for us. If we wanted to defend the jersey, we would have done so. Primoz agreed that we would give up the jersey. It may sound a bit strange, but we are satisfied despite losing the leader’s jersey.”