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The last time Dan Martin battled up Alto de la Covatilla in La Vuelta was in the 2011 edition, when he won the stage.
Back then, just days after his 25th
birthday, the Irish cyclist saw off Bauke Mollema
to win. Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome and
Vincenzo Nibali were unable to live with Martin’s finishing kick that day and
trailed in seconds later.
Today, Martin was fighting the gradient and his opponents’
attacks rather than turning the screw at the front. While he said it was “one
stage too far” for him, he still got the job done.
All three of the men ahead of him overall this morning
managed to drop him today on the final climb; Richard Carapaz (Ineos
Grenadiers), Primoz Roglic (Jumbo Visma) and Hugh Carthy (EF Pro Cycling).
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Also riding away from Dan Martin on La Covatilla was Enric Mas, the Movistar rider just behind the Irishman overall.
However, when the attacks came thick and
fast in the select group and Martin was dropped, he managed to claw his way up
to the summit without losing too much time to Mas and so he kept his 4th place overall.
At the finish today, Martin described the
stage as one of the biggest tests of his professional career.
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“I started off the day feeling good, but that was one of
the hardest races I’ve ever done,” he said of the 179.5km stage in cold and wet
conditions; all on undulating roads with a big climb to finish.
“With the cold and rain and savage pace all day it was
just one stage too far for me. I emptied the tank and minimised our losses.
“We envisaged an attack on the podium but in the end, the three guys in front were just better,” he said of race leader Roglic, 2nd placed overall Carapaz and 3rd place Carthy; the latter having ridden out of his skin through this race.
For his part, Martin said he was very happy to have won
stage 3 – his first pro win since his twin daughters were born two years ago –
and was feeling thankful to his Israel Start-Up Nation team as he is now poised
to take 4th overall in the Vuelta, the best Grand Tour finish of his career.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we have achieved these past
three weeks,” he said of his and his team’s performance.
“Israel Start-Up Nation signed me last year with the
belief that I was capable of results like this and it’s amazing for me to pay
back that belief.
“They gave me a team built around me and the guys did all
they could for me for three weeks.
“It’s been one hell of a ride and to get the best Grand
Tour result of my career and a stage victory, we could not have imagined such results
three weeks ago.
“It’s a milestone for the team as we build into
what is an incredibly exciting year next year where our ambitions as a team
will be even greater,” he added of his team which has signed Chris Froome,
Paddy Bevin and Michael Woods, among others, for next season.
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