On Saturday, Eddie Dunbar celebrated the highest achievement of his professional career thus far, securing his second stage victory in this year’s Vuelta a España. Earlier, the 28-year-old rider from Cork had already tasted success in stage 11 of the race but his latter triumph on the second to last day was all the more notable, in which he outperformed top cyclists from around the globe in the final mountain phase of the contest.
When he made his move to the forefront, a mere five kilometres from the peak of Picón Blanco, a category one mountain, Dunbar expertly distanced himself from the chief contenders of the overall ranking. Eventually catching up with the solitary front-runner, Pavel Sivakov of the UAE Team Emirates, Dunbar seized the lead with a margin of 3.5 kilometres left.
Seasoned Grand Tour competitors like Enric Mas from Movistar Team, Mikel Landa of T-Rex Quick-Step and David Gaudu from Groupama FDJ surged forward in response, but Dunbar held onto his lead, skillfully withstanding any attempts made to overtake him.
Dunbar had predicted that this stage would be a tough one, however, he also suspected that many of the cyclists, particularly those vying for the general classification, might be struggling after three demanding weeks of racing. As he was slightly lagging on the general classification, Dunbar knew he had to follow the game plan perfectly through the final week in order to stand a chance to clinch a stage win on the day. He said, “I was confident I could secure today’s victory.”
Victory was his as he crossed the finish line seven seconds ahead of Mas, maintaining a 10-second lead ahead of the race front-runner, Primoz Roglic from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. Given the toughness of the uphill climb and the calibre of his competition, this stands as Dunbar’s most remarkable victory to date.
Roglic’s team morale was impacted as reports emerged from the Spanish media about a salmonella case within their team, resulting in a team member’s hospitalisation.
The Slovenian cyclist wasn’t at his best but managed to maintain a 2:02 lead over prior race leader Ben O’Connor from Decathlon-Ag2r La Mondiale, as they approach the final stage time-trial in Madrid on Sunday. Occupying third position, Mas trails by 2:11, giving ex-Olympic champ Roglic a significant cushion and marking him out as a likely candidate for his fourth Vuelta title, which would equal the existing record. Meanwhile, Dunbar has advanced two spots to secure 11th position overall, providing him with a significant confidence surge ahead of the imminent road world championships.