The profile of the fifth stage in Spain was almost a copy of the previous day. Soon after the start in Morella, a single leader was ahead of the peloton. His advantage was quickly wiped out on the Collado de la Ibola, the day's only categorised climb. The rest of the stage was trouble-free for Team Jumbo-Visma.

Sports director Grischa Niermann also saw this. "The goal for the fifth stage was to reach the finish unscathed. We managed that; we got through the day in good shape. Wilco felt good after yesterday's crash. It's a nice boost for the team.”

A challenging stage is on the agenda for Thursday. After more than 180 kilometres, the finish is on the Pico del Buitre, a first-category climb. "Tomorrow will be another test for our riders. Of course, we already had a tough stage two days ago. The final climb will be tough. Fortunately, this is familiar territory for Primoz, who finished sixth there in 2019”, Niermann concluded.