VPV3: Status quo

OK, so my headline is quite boring. Hands up. Using the same headline two days in a row is not very creative, but it's 2:00 AM and I've got to get up early tomorrow. Anyway, the racing was not boring, though. It rarely is in this race. Watching País Vasco is a virtual guarantee for entertainment actually. But today's stage didn't really result in any major changes to the overall classification. Egoi Martínez finally got into the break of the day after giving it quite a few tries earlier on in this race, and he stayed out there 'till something like five kilometres were left to be raced. Two clicks out Vino did his trademark move and stayed clear for a, let's admit it, unpopular stage win. Unpopular he might be, and he's certainly not one of my favourite riders, but his class on the bike makes it almost impossible not to like him in one way or another. Like Samu, everything Vino does on a bike just looks right. The same can't be said for what he does off the bike, but that's another story entirely. Samu, accompanied by Isasi, Verdugo and Velasco, stayed with the main group to keep hold of his third place on GC. Txurruka and Urtasun finished 1:52 and 1:54 down, while Martínez and Oroz ended up 9:05 in arrears. If today's stage didn't really pit the overall candidates against one another, tomorrow's stage to Arrate and down into Eibar certainly will. Samu describes the stage as the highlight of the whole Vuelta, so he for one will be fired up. He won there last year remember, so don't be surprised if he claims what will be a richly-deserved victory at around 5:00 PM tomorrow.