Stage 13: Status quo as Antón eyes Asturias

Stage 13 of the Vuelta a España was a quiet affair for Euskaltel as a break, without orange representation, was allowed to go the distance.

Underrated Brit Steve Cummings over at BMC snatched the win with a canny late-race move, just holding off Orica-GreenEdge's Cameron Meyer, due a stage win soon if he keeps up his aggressive riding, and Sky's likeable Spaniard Juan Antonio Flecha.

The Euskaltel riders got through the stage without too much fuss, everyone bar Mikel Astarloza finishing inside the peloton. Astarloza, so close to glory on Thursday, encountered mechanical problems at the wrong time and eventually came in over six minutes down in 146th place. Romain Sicard and Rubén Pérez infiltrated a dangerous-looking early-race move, but they were both swept up and forced to spend the day looking out for their captain instead. Antón, who came in 52nd and maintained his 11th place overall, was looking forward to the mountainous stages to come.

"(The stages to Ancares, Lagos de Covadonga and Cuiti Negro) will decide the outcome of the race", the Euskaltel leader said post-stage to the team's website. "There will still be the Bola del Mundo left, but I don't think anything else will happen on that climb than on the three upcoming ones. On the Ancares (Saturday), riders will be strong, as it's the first one, and there will be movement. The stage to Lagos (Sunday), with the climb of Fito just before it, will be very important for the overall I think. That might be where Contador will look to blow up the race. And the stage to Cuitu Negro is the hardest and, after two days in the mountains prior to it, it'll be a colossus. Winning a stage would be nice, no doubt, but that's not my main goal."

Stage 13 results (full results here):

• (1, Steven Cummings (BMC), 4:05:02)
• 20, Rubén Pérez, 0:40
• 45, Gorka Verdugo, s.t.
• 52, Igor Antón, s.t.
• 62, Amets Txurruka, s.t.
• 91, Juan José Oroz, s.t.
• 96, Iván Velasco, s.t.
• 103, Mikel Landa, s.t.
• 107, Romain Sicard, s.t.
• 146, Mikel Astarloza, 6:06

General classification:

• (1, Joaquín Rodríguez (Katusha), 48:56:17)
• 11, Igor Antón, 6:08
• 19, Gorka Verdugo, 8:13
• 28, Amets Txurruka, 12:21
• 35, Iván Velasco, 19:27
• 36, Mikel Astarloza, 20:11
• 37, Juan José Oroz, 22:06
• 40, Romain Sicard, 24:11
• 80, Rubén Pérez, 52:47
• 85, Mikel Landa, 54:34

Photo: www.fundacioneuskadi.com