Eddie Dunbar (Team Jayco AlUla) will play no further part in La Vuelta after crashing just before the start proper of today's stage 5. The incident that forced his withdrawal was the third crash he suffered as he also fell twice during the team time trial in Barcelona, run off in very wet conditions.
Dunbar's withdrawal from the race today is a bitter blow for the Irishman and came after he was still trying to shake off the impact of his falls on the opening day of racing. He had lost time yesterday, and the previous day, and it looked like his race would probably switch to fighting for a stage win rather than persisting with a general classification challenge.
It appears he fell while the peloton was still in the neutralised section of today's stage 5, some 186.2km from Morella to Burriana, with the injuries that forced him out now likely to call into question the remainder of his season.
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Dunbar finished 7th in the Giro d'Italia in May, which was just the second Grand Tour of his career, and had gone into this Vuelta with aspirations of a top 10 finish once again. He was team leader for Jayco AlUla, which intended to support him in the overall battle and also go for stage wins with other riders.
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However, Ireland's Dunbar lost 2:37 on the first mountain stage to Andorra on Monday and then shed 1:33 yesterday, leaving him down in 42nd place overall and some 5:05 off race leader Remco Evenepoel (Soudal QuickStep).
Speaking after Monday's stage to Andorra, he said he simply did not have the legs for the final climb and was dropped, before adding he hoped he could come around in the days ahead. Unfortunately, he will not get that chance now.
More to come.
