Koldo 6th in Marbella

Koldo Fernández sprinted to a good sixth place on today's first road stage in the Vuelta. The 173km stage from Alcale de Guadaira to Marbello saw the usual break go clear and then getting reeled back in, setting it up for a granstand finish between a plethora of top sprinters. Belarus champ Hutarovich ended up taking top spoils ahead of such illustrious names as Cav, Farrar and Petacchi. Koldo was right behind those guys in sixth, beating household names Bennati, Förster, Weylandt, Haedo and Hushovd, to name but a few. That no doubt bodes well for the remainder of the race, as he seems to be close to top form. Pablo Urtasun did a good lead-out and was 17th himself, while the rest of the guys, except for Amets Txurruka and Mikel Nieve, came in with the peloton. The sylf-like climber duo came in at 26 seconds along with some other strong escaladores like Tschopp and Pujol. Speaking after the stage, Koldo said: "The truth is that the line-up of sprinters in this Vuelta is exceptional. Cavendish, Farrar, Petacchi, Bennati... They are great sprinters, and Hutarovich deserves a lot of credit for managing to surprise them. I went in to this race with a good state of form, and I managed to be in the fight for the win. I got a little closed in towards the fences, and I didn't want to risk anything. I launched my sprint, but my position wasn't good enough... "