It can be stated that in the last few days, two battles have taken place in the Vuelta a España 2023. The battle for the Red Jersey within the Jumbo-Visma team and the battle for 4th place in the general classification, which coincidentally is being contested between three Spaniards, Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates), Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious), and Enric Mas (Movistar Team). The difference between them is only 30 seconds.
Bad feeling on the Angliru stage
“I had a bad feeling yesterday. Fortunately, things went better today during the stage. I won’t use that as an excuse, but yesterday I didn’t feel well health-wise. The early phase was very tough in the previous stage, but today wasn’t so bad,” Ayuso said to Eurosport after the stage.
However, when Landa attacked on the final climb, Ayuso quickly caught his wheel. Any hopes of the pair working together, however, were quickly dashed when Ayuso refused to take his turn at the front after Landa’s request.
Ayuso expects a big battle on Saturday.
“Landa attacked and he was impressively strong,” Ayuso said. “He accelerated very quickly. I managed to stay on his wheel, and after that, I wanted to work with him. However, I didn’t have the legs to stay with him. It’s a pity I couldn’t help Landa. I hope to recover from three very tough stages tomorrow. The last big fight will take place on Saturday. I expect a big battle.”