Vuelta a España 2006 / stages

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1st stage on August 26th in Málaga (7.3 km; MZF )

Result of the 1st stage
Stage winner Team CSC 7:36 min
(57.632 km / h)
Second Caisse d'Epargne-
Illes Balears		 + 0:07 min
Third Team Milram + 0:08 min
Fourth Discovery Channel + 0:09 min
fifth T-Mobile team + 0:11 min
Sixth Team Astana + 0:12 min
seventh Saunier Duval-Prodir + 0:13 min
Eighth Crédit Agricole + 0:13 min
Ninth Liquigas-Bianchi + 0:13 min
Tenth Quick Step Innergetic + 0:15 min
Intermediate result after the 1st stage
First Carlos Sastre 7:36 min
Second Lars Bak equal time
Third Nicki Sørensen equal time
Team evaluation Team CSC 22:48 min
Second Caisse d'Epargne-
Illes Balears		 + 0:21 min
Third Team Milram + 0:24 min

The beginning of the 61st Vuelta a España , which was held in a 7.3 km long team time trial, decided the Danish team CSC in its favor.

The first team went at 19:12 the Spanish Équipe Relax-Fuenlabrada GAM , which the organizer is a wildcard , had received in the Estadio La Rosaleda at the start. The last team followed was Rabobank , the team around the Russian defending champion Denis Menshov at 8:32 p.m.

Team CSC secured victory with a time of 7:36 minutes, followed by Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears around Alejandro Valverde and the (expected) Tour de France winner Óscar Pereiro , seven seconds behind. Third place went to the German-Italian team Milram , eight seconds behind. The German ProTeams T-Mobile and Gerolsteiner came in fifth and thirteen. Disappointingly, Rabobank finished the time trial in twelfth place. The 21st and last place went to Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada, 37 seconds behind.

Carlos Sastre took over the gold jersey at the same time as his teammates Lars Bak and Nicki Sørensen , as he was the first to lead Team CSC across the finish line .

Intermediate results

1st intermediate time measuring point (3.3 km)

First Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears 3:33 min
Second Team Milram + 0:01 min
Third Discovery Channel + 0:01 min
Fourth Team Astana + 0:02 min
fifth Liquigas-Bianchi + 0:02 min
Sixth Saunier Duval-Prodir + 0:03 min
seventh Team Gerolsteiner + 0:03 min
Eighth Team CSC + 0:03 min
Ninth Quick Step Innergetic + 0:04 min
Tenth Euskaltel-Euskadi + 0:04 min

2nd stage on August 27th from Málaga to Córdoba (176 km)

Result of the 2nd stage
Stage winner Paolo Bettini 4:19:31 h
(40.691 km / h)
Second Thor Hushovd equal time
Third Luca Paolini equal time
Fourth Robbie McEwen equal time
fifth Uroš Murn equal time
Sixth Francisco José Ventoso equal time
seventh Iñaki Isasi equal time
Eighth Bernhard Eisel equal time
Ninth Jean-Patrick Nazon equal time
Tenth Erik Zabel equal time
Intermediate result after the 2nd stage
First Thor Hushovd 4:27:00 h
Second Paolo Bettini + 0:02 min
Third Stuart O'Grady + 0:07 min
Scoring Paolo Bettini 25 p.
Second Thor Hushovd 24 p.
Third Luca Paolini 16 p.
Mountain scoring Mario de Sarraga 12 p.
Second Benoît Joachim 5 p.
Third Rubén Pérez 5 p.
Combination scoring Mario de Sarraga 198 P.
Team evaluation Team CSC 13:06:09 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-
Illes Balears		 + 0:07 min
Third Team Milram + 0:08 min

For a long time, the second stage was dictated by the Spaniard Mario de Sárraga from the Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada team . He and David de la Fuente had left after two miles . However, due to a defect, this fell back into the main field after a further three kilometers. De Sárraga continued his escape solo and gained a maximum lead of just over thirteen minutes. After the sprinter teams took up chase, the lead narrowed dramatically. When this had shrunk to about two minutes, Benoît Joachim and Thierry Marichal pulled away from the field and shortly afterwards caught up with De Sárraga, who had been leading 140 kilometers up until then. De Sárraga could not keep up with the pace of his two new companions and fell back into the field. Marichal and Joachim were also overtaken 14 kilometers from the finish.

In the final sprint of the field, Paolo Bettini prevailed ahead of Thor Hushovd and Luca Paolini . Hushovd took over the gold jersey from Carlos Sastre , now two seconds ahead of Paolo Bettini, who took the lead in the points classification. Outlier De Sárraga rewarded himself with the temporary lead in the mountain and combined classification.

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Monturque (109.2 km)

First Mario de Sarraga 4 p. And 6 s
Second Thor Hushovd 2 p. And 4 s
Third Magnus Backstedt 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Fernán Núñez (138 km)

First Mario de Sarraga 4 p. And 6 s
Second Thor Hushovd 2 p. And 4 s
Third Magnus Backstedt 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Casabermeja , category 3 (20.5 km)

First Mario de Sarraga 6 p.
Second Rubén Pérez 4 p.
Third José Antonio Garrido 2 p.
Fourth Benoît Joachim 1 P.

Alto de Las Pedrizas , Category 3 (29.5 km)

First Mario de Sarraga 6 p.
Second Benoît Joachim 4 p.
Third José Antonio Garrido 2 p.
Fourth Rubén Pérez 1 P.

3rd stage on August 28th from Córdoba to Almendralejo (219 km)

Result of the 3rd stage
Stage winner Francisco José Ventoso 5:43:45 h
(38.225 km / h)
Second Thor Hushovd equal time
Third Stuart O'Grady equal time
Fourth Erik Zabel equal time
fifth Robbie McEwen equal time
Sixth Danilo Napolitano equal time
seventh Luca Paolini equal time
Eighth Pedro Horrillo equal time
Ninth Aurélien Clerc equal time
Tenth Jean-Patrick Nazon equal time
Intermediate result after the 3rd stage
First Thor Hushovd 10:10:33 h
Second Stuart O'Grady + 0:11 min
Third Francisco José Ventoso + 0:12 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 44 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 35 p.
Third Paolo Bettini 27 P.
Mountain scoring Mario de Sarraga 18 p.
Second David de la Fuente 6 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 6 p.
Combination scoring David de la Fuente 26 p.
Second Enrico Franzoi 100 p.
Third Hervé Duclos-Lassalle 143 P.
Team evaluation Team CSC 30:17:24 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-
Illes Balears		 + 0:07 min
Third Team Milram + 0:08 min

After the field had reached the first mountain classification after six kilometers, the trio David de la Fuente , Enrico Franzoi and Hervé Duclos-Lassalle pulled away on the descent . They quickly expanded their lead to a maximum of 7:42 minutes. Then the teams of sprinters started the chase and shortened the distance. They were also supported by a tire defect at Duclos-Lassalle in the breakaway group. As a result, he briefly lost touch with his two companions, who, however, significantly slowed down and waited for him. Nineteen kilometers from the finish, de la Fuente's attack blew up the group of three. While Franzoi de la Fuentes could keep up the attack, Duclos-Lassalle quickly fell back into the main field. Six kilometers from the finish, the main field caught up with the still fleeting duo.

In a tight sprint to the finish, Francisco José Ventoso won ahead of Thor Hushovd and Stuart O'Grady . Hushovd slightly extended his lead in the overall standings , as did Mario de Sárraga in the mountains classification. In addition, Hushovd also took the lead in the points classification, while David de la Fuente was able to slip on the jersey of the combined classification leader.

The field on the passage in La Cardenchosa in the Badajoz province

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Peñarroya de Pueblonuevo (80 km)

First David de la Fuente 4 p. And 6 s
Second Hervé Duclos-Lassalle 2 p. And 4 s
Third Enrico Franzoi 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Azuaga (128 km)

First David de la Fuente 4 p. And 6 s
Second Enrico Franzoi 2 p. And 4 s
Third Hervé Duclos-Lassalle 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Villaviciosa , category 3 (6 km)

First Mario de Sarraga 6 p.
Second Jorge García Marín 4 p.
Third José Antonio Garrido 2 p.
Fourth Benoît Joachim 1 P.

Puerto del Aire , category 3 (30 km)

First David de la Fuente 6 p.
Second Enrico Franzoi 4 p.
Third Hervé Duclos-Lassalle 2 p.
Fourth Mads Kaggestad 1 P.

4th stage on August 29th from Almendralejo to Cáceres (135 km)

Result of the 4th stage
Stage winner Erik Zabel 3:24:46 h
(39.557 km / h)
Second Thor Hushovd equal time
Third Jean-Patrick Nazon equal time
Fourth Stuart O'Grady equal time
fifth Francisco José Ventoso equal time
Sixth Bernhard Eisel equal time
seventh André Greipel equal time
Eighth Paolo Bettini equal time
Ninth Robbie McEwen equal time
Tenth Luca Paolini equal time
Intermediate result after the 4th stage
First Thor Hushovd 13:34:59 h
Second Erik Zabel + 0:27 min
Third Stuart O'Grady + 0:27 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 68 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 47 P.
Third Erik Zabel 45 p.
Mountain scoring Mario de Sarraga 18 p.
Second David de la Fuente 6 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 6 p.
Combination scoring David de la Fuente 30 p.
Second Enrico Franzoi 102 P.
Third Hervé Duclos-Lassalle 144 P.
Team evaluation Team CSC 40:31:42 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-
Illes Balears		 + 0:07 min
Third Team Milram + 0:08 min

As on the previous days, the Professional Continental Team Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada was very active at the beginning of the short stage. Raúl García de Mateoss took off after just two kilometers . He gained a maximum lead of 6:33 minutes before the peloton began to follow up and slowly reduced the lead. Sixteen kilometers from the finish he was taken off the peloton.

Immediately after the merger, Jorge García Marín , another Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada rider, attacked and pulled away slightly. But after only seven kilometers of single drive, the field caught up with him again. However, it remained uneasy in the field, as individual or several drivers started attacks again and again.

Erik Zabel secured his second win of the season in the finish sprint . On the other places followed Thor Hushovd , who again slightly increased the lead in the overall standings, and Jean-Patrick Nazon .

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in La Garrovilla (39 km)

First Raúl García de Mateoss 4 p. And 6 s
Second Thor Hushovd 2 p. And 4 s
Third Stuart O'Grady 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Puebla de Obando (90 km)

First Raúl García de Mateoss 4 p. And 6 s
Second Thor Hushovd 2 p. And 4 s
Third Stuart O'Grady 1 P. and 2 s

5th stage on August 30th from Plasencia to La Covatilla ( Béjar ) (178 km)

Result of the 5th stage
Stage winner Danilo Di Luca 5:02:25 h
(35.316 km / h)
Second Janez Brajkovič equal time
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 0:07 min
Fourth José Ángel Gómez Marchante + 0:15 min
fifth Carlos Sastre + 0:22 min
Sixth Alejandro Valverde equal time
seventh Ruggero Marzoli + 0:36 min
Eighth Samuel Sánchez + 0:39 min
Ninth Manuel Beltran equal time
Tenth Bernhard Kohl + 0:42 min
Intermediate result after the 5th stage
First Danilo Di Luca 18:37:56 h
Second Janez Brajkovič + 0:04 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 0:18 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 68 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 47 P.
Third Erik Zabel 45 p.
Mountain scoring Danilo Di Luca 30 p.
Second José Miguel Elías 26 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 26 p.
Combination scoring Danilo Di Luca 10 p.
Second Janez Brajkovič 15 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 20 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 55:40:27 h
Second Team Astana + 2:37 min
Third Saunier Duval-Prodir + 2:39 min

The first mountain stage of this year's edition began very restlessly and there were repeated attempts to break away. Only after about 42 kilometers did a larger group break away. It was composed of Michael Rasmussen , Pietro Caucchioli , Wladimir Gussew , Paolo Bettini and Sérgio Paulinho , among others . There were a maximum of 16 drivers in the group, the composition of which changed again and again due to the attractive route profile. The group, led by the strong climbers, drove together over the first three mountain passes and developed a maximum advantage of 4:28 minutes.

On the descent from the Alto de Lagunilla, Iñigo Landaluze stood out from the top group. His attempt to escape ended a few kilometers before the foot of the final climb to La Covatilla , which the leading group tackled with about a minute ahead of the favorites. In the main draw , the teams Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears led by Alejandro Valverde and CSC led by Carlos Sastre took the lead and reduced the gap. Meanwhile, Paulinho attacked in the leading group, which fell apart completely. A little later, however, David Arroyo caught up with him.

The first victim of the elimination process in the favorite group was surprisingly defending champion Denis Menshov , who lost the connection seven kilometers from the finish. After Valverde stepped up the pace, the breakaway duo, which had in the meantime received support from José Ángel Gómez Marchante , was overtaken. Gómez Marchante stayed in the lead for a short time before he was caught up by Danilo Di Luca after an attack and fell behind Di Luca and Janez Brajkovič . Even Andrei Kaschetschkin still managed Gómez Marchante to pass in the last race and catch up with the leading duo. In the final sprint, Di Luca won ahead of Brajkovič and Kaschetschkin.

With his victory, Di Luca took the lead both in the overall standings and in the mountain and combined standings.

tasks

Disqualifications

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Jaraiz de la Vera (31 km)

First Daniel Becke 4 p. And 6 s
Second László Bodrogi 2 p. And 4 s
Third Ángel Gómez 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Cabezuela del Valle (79.8 km)

First Joaquim Rodríguez 4 p. And 6 s
Second Xavier Florencio 2 p. And 4 s
Third Eric Leblacher 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Puerto del Piornal , Category 1 (52.7 km)

First Angel Vallejo 16 p.
Second Xavier Florencio 12 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 10 p.
Fourth José Miguel Elías 8 p.
fifth Pietro Caucchioli 6 p.
Sixth Sérgio Paulinho 4 p.
seventh Michael Rasmussen 3 p.
Eighth Joaquim Rodríguez 2 p.
Ninth Iñigo Landaluze 1 P.

Puerto de Honduras , category 1 (100.5 km)

First Vladimir Gusev 16 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 12 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 10 p.
Fourth José Miguel Elías 8 p.
fifth Sérgio Paulinho 6 p.
Sixth David Arroyo 4 p.
seventh Michael Rasmussen 3 p.
Eighth Torsten Hiekmann 2 p.
Ninth José Luis Arrieta 1 P.

Alto de Lagunilla , category 2 (136 km)

First José Miguel Elías 10 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 7 p.
Third Sérgio Paulinho 5 p.
Fourth Vladimir Gusev 3 p.
fifth David Arroyo 2 p.
Sixth Michael Rasmussen 1 P.

La Covatilla , category Especial (178 km)

First Danilo Di Luca 30 p.
Second Janez Brajkovič 25 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 20 p.
Fourth José Ángel Gómez Marchante 16 p.
fifth Carlos Sastre 12 p.
Sixth Alejandro Valverde 10 p.
seventh Ruggero Marzoli 8 p.
Eighth Samuel Sánchez 6 p.
Ninth Manuel Beltran 4 p.
Tenth Bernhard Kohl 3 p.
Eleventh Tom Danielson 2 p.
Twelfth Leonardo Piepoli 1 P.

6th stage on August 31st from Zamora to León (177 km)

Result of the 6th stage
Stage winner Thor Hushovd 4:09:10 h
(42.622 km / h)
Second André Greipel equal time
Third Erik Zabel equal time
Fourth Alessandro Petacchi equal time
fifth Danilo Napolitano equal time
Sixth Bernhard Eisel equal time
seventh Luca Paolini equal time
Eighth Stuart O'Grady equal time
Ninth Aljaksandr Ussau equal time
Tenth Francisco José Ventoso equal time
Intermediate result after the 6th stage
First Danilo Di Luca 22:47:11 h
Second Janez Brajkovič + 0:04 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 0:18 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 94 P.
Second Erik Zabel 61 P.
Third Francisco José Ventoso 59 P.
Mountain scoring Danilo Di Luca 30 p.
Second José Miguel Elías 26 p.
Third Benoît Joachim 26 p.
Combination scoring Danilo Di Luca 11 p.
Second Janez Brajkovič 18 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 22 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 68:08:07 h
Second Team Astana + 2:32 min
Third Saunier Duval-Prodir + 2:39 min

After ten kilometers on the flat stage, Mathieu Claude pulled away from the Bouygues Télécom team , who quickly expanded their lead to a maximum of eleven minutes. However, since the lead melted just as quickly as it had grown, his solo escape ended after 145 kilometers of single drive a few meters before the second intermediate sprint of the day.

After the field merged, Olivier Kaisen and Enrico Franzoi tried to break away from the field. But they too were caught again six kilometers from the finish, which resulted in another attack by a group of three, which was also unsuccessful. In the mass sprint of the field, Thor Hushovd , after three second places, secured his first victory ahead of the two Germans André Greipel and Erik Zabel . Alessandro Petacchi achieved fourth place, the first good placement since his injury-related loss at the Giro d'Italia 2006 .

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Villarín de Campos (34 km)

First Mathieu Claude 4 p. And 6 s
Second Francisco José Ventoso 2 p. And 4 s
Third Thor Hushovd 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Mansilla de las Mulas (156.5 km)

First Francisco José Ventoso 4 p. And 6 s
Second Luis León Sánchez Gil 2 p. And 4 s
Third David Millar 1 P. and 2 s

7th stage on September 1st from León to the Alto de El Morredero ( Ponferrada ) (154.2 km)

Result of the 7th stage
Stage winner Alejandro Valverde 4:01:05 h
(38.377 km / h)
Second Carlos Sastre + 0:04 min
Third José Ángel Gómez Marchante + 0:06 min
Fourth Janez Brajkovič + 0:07 min
fifth Manuel Beltran equal time
Sixth Alexander Vinokurov + 0:12 min
seventh Luis Perez + 0:16 min
Eighth Andrei Kashechkin equal time
Ninth Stijn Devolder + 0:23 min
Tenth Ruggero Marzoli + 0:29 min
Intermediate result after the 7th stage
First Janez Brajkovič 26:48:27 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:05 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:10 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 94 P.
Second Erik Zabel 61 P.
Third Francisco José Ventoso 59 P.
Mountain scoring Janez Brajkovič 33 P.
Second Danilo Di Luca 30 p.
Third Alejandro Valverde 26 p.
Combination scoring Janez Brajkovič 10 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 11 p.
Third José Ángel Gómez Marchante 19 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 80:11:59 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 5:20 min
Third Team Astana + 5:26 min

On the hilly section of the day with a final 18 kilometer climb, David Loosli , Staf Scheirlinckx and László Bodrogi pulled away after 24 kilometers . They drove out onto the main field for a maximum of 12:33 minutes.

In the final ascent, which the trio tackled with a lead of around five minutes, it then fell apart, with Loosli proving to be the strongest on the mountain. In the main draw, Denis Menshov was the first of the favorites to show a weakness and fell out of the group. After an attack by Luis Pérez , the main field fell apart. Behind him, a group formed around Bernhard Kohl , Sylwester Szmyd , Manuel Beltrán , Stijn Devolder , Joaquim Rodríguez , Ryder Hesjedal , Sérgio Paulinho and Alexander Winokurow , while the favorites waited for the overall victory in a large group behind them. While the group around Vinokurow caught up with Pérez, Paulinho fell behind from the same. The group of nine was caught up by the group of favorites a little later, in which overall leader Danilo Di Luca showed weaknesses. Alejandro Valverde then increased the pace briefly, which in turn made the group slightly smaller for a short time. After an attack by Iban Mayo three kilometers from the finish, the group became restless again and Loosli's lead decreased dramatically. Janez Brajkovič and Alexander Vinokurow were the first two to pass Loosli two kilometers from the finish. A group of nine around Valverde followed just behind and caught up with the leader duo one kilometer from the finish. Thereupon Vinokurov attacked again and when it seemed 200 meters from the finish as if the victory could no longer be taken from him, Valverde attacked again in the group behind. In the end, he sprinted over Vinokourov, who dragged himself the last few meters to the finish and only finished the stage in sixth. Carlos Sastre was second, four seconds behind José Ángel Gómez Marchante , two seconds behind.

Danilo Di Luca reached the goal 1:58 minutes behind and lost the gold jersey to Janez Brajkovič. He also took the lead in the mountain and combined classification.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Toreno (101 km)

First David Loosli 4 p. And 6 s
Second László Bodrogi 2 p. And 4 s
Third Staf Scheirlinckx 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Ponferrada (124.7 km)

First László Bodrogi 4 p. And 6 s
Second Staf Scheirlinckx 2 p. And 4 s
Third David Loosli 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de El Morredero (Ponferrada) , Category 1 (154.2 km)

First Alejandro Valverde 16 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 12 p.
Third José Ángel Gómez Marchante 10 p.
Fourth Janez Brajkovič 8 p.
fifth Manuel Beltran 6 p.
Sixth Alexander Vinokurov 4 p.
seventh Luis Perez 3 p.
Eighth Andrei Kashechkin 2 p.
Ninth Stijn Devolder 1 P.

8th stage on September 2nd from Ponferrada to Lugo (181.6 km)

Result of the 8th stage
Stage winner Alexander Vinokurov 4:02:11 h
(44.991 km / h)
Second Ruggero Marzoli + 0:01 min
Third Uroš Murn equal time
Fourth Thor Hushovd equal time
fifth Paolo Bettini equal time
Sixth Erik Zabel equal time
seventh Samuel Sánchez equal time
Eighth Thomas Ziegler equal time
Ninth Andrea Moletta equal time
Tenth Davide rebel equal time
Intermediate result after the 8th stage
First Janez Brajkovič 30:50:39 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:05 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:10 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 111 P.
Second Erik Zabel 71 P.
Third Francisco José Ventoso 59 P.
Mountain scoring Janez Brajkovič 33 P.
Second Danilo Di Luca 30 p.
Third Pietro Caucchioli 29 p.
Combination scoring Janez Brajkovič 12 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 14 p.
Third Carlos Sastre 22 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 92:18:35 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 5:20 min
Third Team Astana + 5:55 min

The eighth part of the day began quite uneasily with several attempts to break away. Kevin Van Impe was only able to break away decisively after 68 kilometers . Despite the high speed in the peloton, he achieved a maximum lead of around 5:40 minutes. After about 100 kilometers on his own, he was caught again 13 kilometers from the destination.

Then there was an attack by Óscar Pereiro and René Haselbacher . However, they were caught five kilometers from the finish.

On the home straight with a four percent gradient, the situation resembled that of the previous day. With Luca Paolini , a fast man had broken away from the remaining group of around 65 drivers. However , he was caught by the unlucky fellow from the previous stage, Alexander Vinokurow , who had broken away from this group 300 meters from the goal. In the end, he saved a second ahead of Ruggero Marzoli and Uroš Murn .

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in El Barco de Valdeorras (43 km)

First Sébastien Minard 4 p. And 6 s
Second Olivier Kaisen 2 p. And 4 s
Third Thor Hushovd 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Quiroga (80 km)

First Kevin Van Impe 4 p. And 6 s
Second Thor Hushovd 2 p. And 4 s
Third Enrico Poitschke 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Ares , category 3 (88 km)

First Kevin Van Impe 6 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 4 p.
Third José Miguel Elías 2 p.
Fourth Raúl García de Mateoss 1 P.

9th stage on September 3rd from A Fonsagrada to the Alto de La Cobertoria (207.4 km)

Result of the 9th stage
Stage winner Alexander Vinokurov 5:50:43 h
(35.482 km / h)
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:16 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 0:21 min
Fourth Carlos Sastre + 0:43 min
fifth José Ángel Gómez Marchante equal time
Sixth Danilo Di Luca equal time
seventh Manuel Beltran + 1:46 min
Eighth Leonardo Piepoli equal time
Ninth Samuel Sánchez + 1:59 min
Tenth Stijn Devolder + 2:14 min
Intermediate result after the 9th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 36:41:31 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:27 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:44 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 111 P.
Second Erik Zabel 71 P.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 60 p.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 73 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third David Arroyo 52 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 10 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 15 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 21 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 109: 56: 58 h
Second Team Astana + 3:19 min
Third Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 6:35 min

On the queen stage, larger groups tried to break away from the peloton right from the start. A well-known group of 19 who had run away after four kilometers was put back into place after 23 kilometers.

After 27 kilometers, a group of eleven was able to break up, which included Pietro Caucchioli and David Arroyo . A little later another quartet caught up with the eleven leaders, so that the group grew to 15 drivers. After they had reached the summit of the Puerto de Rañadoiro together, Dario Cioni broke away from the leading group and tried to continue the escape alone. With Cioni's escape it was already over at the foot of the Puerto del Cerredo. As a result, the number of riders in the group changed constantly, but the lead remained constant at almost four minutes.

In the ascent to Alto de San Lorenzo, the group finally disintegrated and the lead rapidly melted. Only David Arroyo, Egoi Martínez and Igor Antón reached the top of the pass with a 46-second lead over the 20-man field from which Iban Mayo had already fallen back. José Miguel Elías followed slightly behind .

At the beginning of the final climb, the favorites watched each other while the Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears team controlled the field. At the foot of the climb, Olympic champion Paolo Bettini dared to attack. However, he was soon overtaken by Sylwester Szmyd . Then Alexander Vinokurow and Andrei Kaschetschkin from the Astana team launched a joint attack. They quickly got a lead of 30 seconds. In the group behind, Carlos Sastre attacked , which put the overall leader Janez Brajkovič in distress and he could no longer follow the pace. Alejandro Valverde , José Ángel Gómez Marchante and Danilo Di Luca followed on Sastre's rear wheel . After Sastre stepped up the pace further, Gomez Marchante and Di Luca fell behind, while Valverde countered the action a kilometer later and set out to pursue the leading duo. There Vinokurow increased the pace and secured his second win of the day. As he passed Kaschetschkin on the penultimate kilometer, Valverde secured second place, 16 seconds behind. Kashechkin was third, 21 seconds back.

Alejandro Valverde secured the overall leader's gold jersey with his second place and also took the lead in the combined classification. Pietro Caucchioli was able to pull on the jersey of the best climber at the end of the day.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in San Antolín (29 km)

First Dario Cioni 4 p. And 6 s
Second Xabier Zandio 2 p. And 4 s
Third Igor Antón 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in San Martín de Teverga (177.8 km)

First David Arroyo 4 p. And 6 s
Second Egoi Martínez 2 p. And 4 s
Third Igor Antón 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Miñide , category 3 (6.5 km)

First Pietro Caucchioli 6 p.
Second Iñigo Landaluze 4 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 2 p.
Fourth Igor Antón 1 P.

Puerto de Connio , category 1 (50 km)

First Pietro Caucchioli 16 p.
Second José Miguel Elías 12 p.
Third Angel Vallejo 10 p.
Fourth David Arroyo 8 p.
fifth Pieter Weening 6 p.
Sixth Mauricio Ardila 4 p.
seventh Igor Antón 3 p.
Eighth Dario Cioni 2 p.
Ninth Lars Bak 1 P.

Puerto de Rañadoiro , category 1 (75.3 km)

First Pietro Caucchioli 16 p.
Second José Miguel Elías 12 p.
Third Angel Vallejo 10 p.
Fourth Pieter Weening 8 p.
fifth Dario Cioni 6 p.
Sixth David Arroyo 4 p.
seventh Mauricio Ardila 3 p.
Eighth Igor Antón 2 p.
Ninth Lars Bak 1 P.

Puerto del Cerredo , category 3 (102 km)

First Pietro Caucchioli 6 p.
Second David Arroyo 4 p.
Third José Miguel Elías 2 p.
Fourth Igor Antón 1 P.

Alto de San Lorenzo , category Especial (166.6 km)

First David Arroyo 30 p.
Second Egoi Martínez 25 p.
Third Igor Antón 20 p.
Fourth José Miguel Elías 16 p.
fifth Luis Perez 12 p.
Sixth Carlos Sastre 10 p.
seventh Stijn Devolder 8 p.
Eighth Danilo Di Luca 6 p.
Ninth Alejandro Valverde 4 p.
Tenth Ryder Hesjedal 3 p.
Eleventh Manuel Beltran 2 p.
Twelfth Tom Danielson 1 P.

Alto de La Cobertoria , Category 1 (207.4 km)

First Alexander Vinokurov 16 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 12 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 10 p.
Fourth Carlos Sastre 8 p.
fifth José Ángel Gómez Marchante 6 p.
Sixth Danilo Di Luca 4 p.
seventh Manuel Beltran 3 p.
Eighth Leonardo Piepoli 2 p.
Ninth Samuel Sánchez 1 P.

10th stage on September 5th from Avilés to the Museo de Altamira in Santillana del Mar (199.3 km)

Result of the 10th stage
Stage winner Sérgio Paulinho 4:33:44 h
(43.685 km / h)
Second Davide rebel + 0:02 min
Third Xavier Florencio equal time
Fourth Vladimir Karpez + 0:06 min
fifth Francisco José Ventoso + 0:07 min
Sixth Vladimir Gusev equal time
seventh Sébastien Joly equal time
Eighth Sébastien Minard equal time
Ninth Dmitri Fofonov equal time
Tenth Yevgeny Petrov equal time
Intermediate result after the 10th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 41:19:09 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:27 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:44 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 111 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 79 P.
Third Erik Zabel 71 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 73 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third David Arroyo 52 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 10 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 15 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 21 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 123: 46: 05 h
Second Team Astana + 3:12 min
Third Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 6:34 min

After the rest day, individual drivers began to attack immediately after the start. After several attempts ended unsuccessfully, after about 40 kilometers a well-known leading group of 24 drivers formed, which a little later reduced to 15 drivers. It included Iban Mayo , Wladimir Gussew , Michael Rasmussen , Davide Rebellin , Wladimir Karpez , David Millar , Sérgio Paulinho , Francisco José Ventoso and Xavier Florencio . They gained a maximum lead of 9:07 minutes, so that Karpets was now virtually wearing the golden jersey. After the CSC team took over the pace work in the main field around Carlos Sastre, who was third in the overall standings , the lead decreased.

In the only mountain classification of the day, which was about twelve kilometers from the finish, the previously disappointing Iban Mayo attacked, but unsuccessfully. A little later, Sébastien Joly tried to exploit the stalking of the strong climbers. But he could not break away decisively either. After another attack by Yevgeny Petrov shortly before the mountain classification, the group fell apart. The riders who had fallen behind found their way again on the descent, while the field reached the mountain classification 3:30 minutes behind.

Dario Cioni attacked four kilometers from the finish without success, but this also meant that other drivers tried to break away. Sérgio Paulinho made the decisive attack one kilometer from the finish and secured his first success with the professionals after winning the silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games . Davide Rebellin and Xavier Florencio followed two seconds back on the other places. The peloton reached the finish line 3:54 minutes behind.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Llanes (120.4 km)

First Francisco José Ventoso 4 p. And 6 s
Second Sébastien Joly 2 p. And 4 s
Third Dario Cioni 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Cobreces (179 km)

First Francisco José Ventoso 4 p. And 6 s
Second David Millar 2 p. And 4 s
Third Yevgeny Petrov 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto del Mirador de Cildad , Category 3 (187.7 km)

First Davide rebel 6 p.
Second Vladimir Karpez 4 p.
Third Yevgeny Petrov 2 p.
Fourth Sérgio Paulinho 1 P.

11th stage on September 6th from Torrelavega ( Velodrome Óscar Freire ) to Burgos (173.6 km)

Result of the 11th stage
Stage winner Egoi Martínez 4:20:32 h
(39.980 km / h)
Second Iñigo Landaluze + 0:55 min
Third Volodymyr Hustov equal time
Fourth Thor Hushovd + 3:35 min
fifth Aljaksandr Ussau equal time
Sixth David Loosli equal time
seventh Andrea Moletta equal time
Eighth Theo Eltink equal time
Ninth Scott Davis equal time
Tenth Joaquim Rodríguez equal time
Intermediate result after the 11th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 45:54:45 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:27 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:44 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 133 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 79 P.
Third Erik Zabel 71 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 73 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 59 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 11 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 16 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 22 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 137: 17: 49 h
Second Team Astana + 6:49 min
Third Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 10:11 min

At the beginning of the undulating section, for which last year's winner Denis Menschow no longer competed, some drivers tried to break away from the field early on. After 27 kilometers, 13 drivers, including Thor Hushovd , Dario Cioni and Egoi Martínez , were able to gain a decisive advantage. When the group had a lead of about a minute on the field, David Cañada tried to catch up with the leaders from the same. Although he was able to break away from the main field, he continued to lose time on the leading group. So he broke off the attempt after 52 kilometers alone and waited for the peloton.

Meanwhile, Martínez had broken away from his twelve competitors at the foot of the Alto del Escudo and continued the journey alone. While the field strolled and the lead increased further, the chasing group let Martínez pull away to about three minutes. When Iñigo Landaluze and Wolodymyr Hustow chased Martínez together on the flatter part of the stage, who was now only about a minute ahead, the latter waited and the three of them continued their escape. In doing so, they expanded their lead over the pursuers, who disagreed but could no longer be endangered by the main field.

About ten kilometers from the finish Martínez attacked again and was again able to break away from his colleagues. In the end he won with 55 seconds ahead of Landaluze and Hustow. Thor Hushovd crossed the finish line first from the chasing group, who crossed the finish line 3:35 minutes behind. The peloton reached the finish line 15:04 minutes behind.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Villacarriedo (28.3 km)

First Thor Hushovd 4 p. And 6 s
Second Aljaksandr Ussau 2 p. And 4 s
Third Scott Davis 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Vega de Pas (46 km)

First Thor Hushovd 4 p. And 6 s
Second Dario Cioni 2 p. And 4 s
Third Sergei Yakovlev 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Puerto de la Braguía , category 1 (39 km)

First Thor Hushovd 16 p.
Second Aljaksandr Ussau 12 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 10 p.
Fourth Dario Cioni 8 p.
fifth Eric Leblacher 6 p.
Sixth Iñigo Landaluze 4 p.
seventh Scott Davis 3 p.
Eighth Sergei Yakovlev 2 p.
Ninth Joaquim Rodríguez 1 P.

Puerto del Escudo , Category 1 (72.5 km)

First Egoi Martínez 16 p.
Second David Loosli 12 p.
Third Aljaksandr Ussau 10 p.
Fourth Dario Cioni 8 p.
fifth Eric Leblacher 6 p.
Sixth Volodymyr Hustov 4 p.
seventh Sergei Yakovlev 3 p.
Eighth Andrea Moletta 2 p.
Ninth Iñigo Landaluze 1 P.

Puerto de Carrales , Category 3 (86.7 km)

First Egoi Martínez 6 p.
Second Dario Cioni 4 p.
Third Eric Leblacher 2 p.
Fourth Aljaksandr Ussau 1 P.

12th stage on September 7th from Aranda de Duero to Guadalajara (169.3 km)

Result of the 12th stage
Stage winner Luca Paolini 3:35:07 h
(47.221 km / h)
Second Bart Dockx + 0:05 min
Third Paolo Bettini equal time
Fourth Vladimir Gusev + 0:08 min
fifth David Arroyo equal time
Sixth Rubén Pérez + 0:17 min
seventh Bernhard Eisel + 0:22 min
Eighth Jean-Patrick Nazon equal time
Ninth Heinrich Haussler + 0:33 min
Tenth Bjorn Leukemans + 0:39 min
Intermediate result after the 12th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 49:38:46 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:27 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:44 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 135 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 79 P.
Third Erik Zabel 71 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 77 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 65 p.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 12 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 18 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 24 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 148: 21: 06 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 10:11 min
Third Team Astana + 15:35 min

On the slightly undulating stage, a quartet separated after 16 kilometers, which after another nine kilometers received support from another five drivers. The best-known driver in the group was Magnus Bäckstedt . Since the field did not let the outliers drive out of sight, the escape attempt ended at the beginning of the only mountain classification at race kilometer 64.

After the field had driven over the mountain classification, a group of eleven, including Paolo Bettini , Bernhard Eisel and Wladimir Gussew , pulled away on the descent . A short time later, a twelfth man joined David Arroyo . The lead for the group of twelve rose quickly to just over eleven minutes before the Astana team was forced to take over the pace work in the main field.

Thirteen kilometers from the finish, the attacks began in the breakaway group with an advance by Bernhard Eisel, followed by Luca Paolini . But after a few hundred meters they were caught up by the rest of the drivers. Heinrich Haussler drove the next attack six kilometers from the target, but his comrades-in-arms reacted and further attacks occurred. Luca Paolini set the deciding factor when there were still four kilometers to go. In the end he won by five seconds ahead of Bart Dockx and Paolo Bettini. The peloton reached the goal 8:53 minutes behind.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Ayllón (44.8 km)

First Magnus Backstedt 4 p. And 6 s
Second Kurt Asle Arvesen 2 p. And 4 s
Third René Haselbacher 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Yunquera de Heranes (153 km)

First Jean-Patrick Nazon 4 p. And 6 s
Second Kevin Hulsmans 2 p. And 4 s
Third Ian McLeod 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Santibáñez de Ayllon , Category 3 (66.4 km)

First Egoi Martínez 6 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 4 p.
Third Paolo Bettini 2 p.
Fourth Óscar Pereiro 1 P.

13th stage on September 8th from Guadalajara to Cuenca (176 km)

Result of the 13th stage
Stage winner Samuel Sánchez 4:03:43 h
(44.314 km / h)
Second Thor Hushovd equal time
Third Alejandro Valverde equal time
Fourth Luca Paolini equal time
fifth Paolo Bettini equal time
Sixth Danilo Di Luca equal time
seventh Ruggero Marzoli equal time
Eighth Erik Zabel equal time
Ninth Stuart O'Grady equal time
Tenth Alexander Vinokurov equal time
Intermediate result after the 13th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 53:42:21 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:35 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 0:52 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 155 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 84 P.
Third Luca Paolini 79 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 81 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 67 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 11 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 19 p.
Third Danilo Di Luca 26 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 160: 32: 15 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 10:32 min
Third Team Astana + 16:41 min

In contrast to the previous days, the stage began calmly. It was only after 19 kilometers that Ángel Vallejo dared to push forward, which was supported by 29 other riders on the climb to the first mountain classification. The escape attempt ended before the scoring.

After 52 kilometers a new group of 13 drivers launched an attack. A quintet emerged from this group on the climb to the Alto de Córcoles. In particular, these were Michael Boogerd , Davide Rebellin , Iñigo Landaluze , Frédéric Bessy and Lars Bak . They created a maximum lead of 7:38 minutes before Team Milram and Quick Step-Innergetic took up the chase and let the lead shrink. The attempt to escape was over twenty kilometers from the finish.

Then the closed field went at high speed into the last mountain, where René Haselbacher drove the first attack. However, his attack was countered by Danilo Di Luca . A sextet around Alejandro Valverde , Alexander Vinokurow , Carlos Sastre , Luis Pérez , Danilo Di Luca and Paolo Bettini remained at the height of the mountain classification, but they did not risk anything in the descent and thus caught up again behind the drivers. Samuel Sánchez broke away from this group with seven kilometers to go. In the end, he saved a few meters ahead of Thor Hushovd and Alejandro Valverde.

Valverde was able to slightly increase his lead in the overall standings thanks to his third place and the eight-second time bonus.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Sacedón (51 km)

First Jean-Patrick Nazon 4 p. And 6 s
Second Lars Bak 2 p. And 4 s
Third Matteo Tosatto 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Priego (100 km)

First Iñigo Landaluze 4 p. And 6 s
Second Frédéric Bessy 2 p. And 4 s
Third Lars Bak 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de la Tendilla , category 3 (31 km)

First Frédéric Bessy 6 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 4 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 2 p.
Fourth David Arroyo 1 P.

Alto de Córcoles , category 3 (60.2 km)

First Michael Boogerd 6 p.
Second Davide rebel 4 p.
Third Frédéric Bessy 2 p.
Fourth Lars Bak 1 P.

Alto del Castillo , Category 3 (167.2 km)

First Alejandro Valverde 6 p.
Second Paolo Bettini 4 p.
Third Carlos Sastre 2 p.
Fourth Alexander Vinokurov 1 P.

14th stage on September 9th in Cuenca (33.2 km; EZF )

Result of the 14th stage
Stage winner David Millar 40:54 min
(48.704 km / h)
Second Fabian Cancellara + 0:00 min
Third Alexander Vinokurov + 0:05 min
Fourth Alejandro Valverde + 0:13 min
fifth Andrei Kashechkin + 0:26 min
Sixth Stijn Devolder + 0:44 min
seventh László Bodrogi + 0:45 min
Eighth Carlos Sastre + 0:46 min
Ninth Stuart O'Grady + 0:54 min
Tenth Vladimir Karpez + 1:03 min
Intermediate result after the 14th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 54:23:28 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:48 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 1:25 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 155 P.
Second Alejandro Valverde 89 P.
Third Francisco José Ventoso 84 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 81 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 67 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 18 p.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 21 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 162: 38: 15 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 10:58 min
Third Team Astana + 16:59 min

The first individual time trial was 33.2 kilometers long and the profile, with the exception of the ascent to and descent from Alto del Castillo, which was already part of the route on the previous stage, was largely flat.

Cyril Lemoine from Crédit Agricole , at that time 158th and last in the overall standings, already 2:03:16 hours behind the leader Alejandro Valverde , was the first driver to start at 10:57 . Valverde took to the track as the last starter at 2:03 p.m.

The first target time was set by the Swiss Fabian Cancellara from Team CSC , who started out in eleventh place. His time of 40:54 minutes lasted for a long time and was only set by David Millar after about an hour and a half.

Among the top 5 drivers in the overall standings , Alexander Vinokourov drove the best time up to the first intermediate time measurement point after 9.9 kilometers. With a time of 12:28 minutes, he was now in seventh place, each eight seconds ahead of Valverde and Andrei Kaschetschkin . Carlos Sastre followed, 15 seconds behind, and José Ángel Gómez Marchante , 17 seconds.

At the second intermediate time on the Alto de Castillo after 20.7 kilometers, Vinokourov was then in the lead and had increased his lead over all competitors. While Valverde was only ten seconds behind him, Kaschetschkin was 25, Sastre 30 and Gómez Marchante 40 seconds behind.

At the finish, Vinokourov was then five seconds behind Millar and Cancellara in third. Valverde finished fourth, 13 seconds behind, and eight on Vinokourov. Kaschetschkin lost 21 seconds to Vinokurow in fifth, Sastre 41 seconds in eighth and Gómez Marchante in 13th 1:10 minutes. Millar's lead was ultimately 546 thousandths of a second over Cancellara.

Valverde kept the gold jersey and extended his lead over all competitors with the exception of Vinokourov, who took fourth place in the overall standings.

Intermediate results

1st intermediate time measuring point in Valdecabras (9.9 km)

First Fabian Cancellara 12:04 min
Second David Millar + 0:10 min
Third Stuart O'Grady + 0:11 min
Fourth Stijn Devolder + 0:13 min
fifth Sébastien Rosseler + 0:16 min
Sixth László Bodrogi + 0:22 min
seventh Alexander Vinokurov + 0:24 min
Eighth Magnus Backstedt + 0:27 min
Ninth Vladimir Gusev + 0:27 min
Tenth Alejandro Valverde + 0:32 min

2. Intermediate time measurement point on the Alto del Castillo (20.7 km)

First Alexander Vinokurov 26:57 min
Second Fabian Cancellara + 0:05 min
Third Alejandro Valverde + 0:10 min
Fourth Stijn Devolder + 0:14 min
fifth David Millar + 0:16 min
Sixth Andrei Kashechkin + 0:25 min
seventh Carlos Sastre + 0:30 min
Eighth Stuart O'Grady + 0:33 min
Ninth José Ángel Gómez Marchante + 0:40 min
Tenth László Bodrogi + 0:42 min

Mountain ratings

Alto del Castillo , category 3 (20.7 km)

First Alexander Vinokurov 6 p.
Second Fabian Cancellara 4 p.
Third Alejandro Valverde 2 p.
Fourth Stijn Devolder 1 P.

15th stage on September 10th from Motilla del Palancar to Factoría Ford in Almussafes (182 km)

Result of the 15th stage
Stage winner Robert Forster 4:24:55 h
(41.221 km / h)
Second Stuart O'Grady equal time
Third Danilo Napolitano equal time
Fourth Thor Hushovd equal time
fifth Paolo Bettini equal time
Sixth Aurélien Clerc equal time
seventh Aaron Kemps equal time
Eighth Geoffroy Lequatre equal time
Ninth Fred Rodriguez equal time
Tenth Jean-Patrick Nazon equal time
Intermediate result after the 15th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 58:48:23 h
Second Andrei Kashechkin + 0:48 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 1:25 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 169 P.
Second Francisco José Ventoso 89 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 89 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 81 P.
Second José Miguel Elías 70 p.
Third Egoi Martínez 67 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 9 p.
Second Carlos Sastre 18 p.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 21 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 175: 53: 00 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 10:58 min
Third Team Astana + 16:59 min

On the last flat stage before the upcoming mountain stages, Jorge García Marín and Kjell Carlström pulled away after twelve kilometers . The duo achieved a maximum lead of 6:30 minutes before Carlström broke off the attempt to escape after 95 kilometers and fell back into the field. García Marín then increased the now somewhat melted lead back to over six minutes. However, his breakaway attempt also ended 14 kilometers from the finish.

Eight kilometers from the finish, David Millar dared another unsuccessful attack. In the final sprint, the German Robert Förster then won ahead of Stuart O'Grady and Danilo Napolitano . After winning the final stage of the Giro d'Italia, he now also secured his first victory in the Tour of Spain.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Requena (73.5 km)

First Jorge García Marín 4 p. And 6 s
Second Kjell Carlström 2 p. And 4 s
Third José Antonio Garrido 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Catadau (163 km)

First Jorge García Marín 4 p. And 6 s
Second José Antonio Garrido 2 p. And 4 s
Third Enrico Poitschke 1 P. and 2 s

16th stage on September 12th from Almería to the Calar Alto observatory (145 km)

Result of the 16th stage
Stage winner Igor Antón 4:29:42 h
(32.258 km / h)
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:23 min
Third Alexander Vinokurov equal time
Fourth Samuel Sánchez equal time
fifth Carlos Sastre + 0:28 min
Sixth Tom Danielson + 0:30 min
seventh Manuel Beltran + 0:42 min
Eighth Luis Perez + 1:10 min
Ninth José Antonio Redondo + 1:13 min
Tenth Stijn Devolder + 1:15 min
Intermediate result after the 16th stage
First Alejandro Valverde 63:18:16 h
Second Alexander Vinokurov + 1:42 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 1:42 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 169 P.
Second Alejandro Valverde 109 p.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 98 P.
Mountain scoring Pietro Caucchioli 105 p.
Second Egoi Martínez 101 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 75 p.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 6 p.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 13 P.
Third Carlos Sastre 18 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 189: 24: 33 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 13:16 min
Third Team Astana + 17:36 min

After the rest day, the attacks started again immediately. First a group of 27 riders tried to break away, but it failed. Further attempts to escape from the field were also quickly ended, before 14 riders including Pietro Caucchioli , Egoi Martínez and Daniel Becke after about 32 kilometers . Up to the summit of the Alto de Velefique, this group had made it out of the peloton for about four minutes, with only 13 riders remaining, as Jérémy Roy had dropped back into the field before the summit.

In the first ascent to the Alto de Calar Alto, the group split into several parts and there were eight riders. Martínez and Caucchioli were the first to reach the mountain classification together with their six remaining competitors. The peloton followed 5:21 minutes behind at the top of the pass. On the approximately 40-kilometer descent, both the leading group and the lead on the main field increased to almost six minutes.

By the second ascent up to the observatory , the runaway lead had melted to around 4:30 minutes. After an attack by José Antonio Redondo and Daniel Becke , the leading group fell apart again, but Becke had to tear down after a short time. Iñigo Landaluze and Egoi Martínez then pursued the leader. Meanwhile, Andrei Kaschetschkin was the first in the group around Alejandro Valverde to no longer be able to follow the others. After Carlos Sastre stepped up the pace , only Valverde, Samuel Sánchez and Alexander Vinokurow could follow, who then launched an attack himself. His three opponents followed him. Then Sastre tried again, followed by an attack by Sánchez. After another attack by Vinokurov, only Valverde was able to follow him, while Sánchez, Sastre and the now open-minded Tom Danielson fell back. Four kilometers from the finish, they then overtook the last drivers of the former top group, as well as Igor Antón , who had caught up with Redondo. Antón recovered and took the lead again, while the suspended drivers caught up with the Valverde-Vinokurow duo. While the favorites watched each other, Antón quickly extended his lead. Two kilometers from the finish, Vinokourov tried again, but Valverde and Sastre followed again. In the end, Valverde and Vinokurow crossed the finish line together. Sastre followed, five seconds behind.

Igor Antón secured the first victory of his professional career ahead of Valverde and Vinokurow, who took second place in the overall standings, at the same time as Carlos Sastre.

tasks

Disqualifications

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Tabernas (25.8 km)

First Frédéric Bessy 4 p. And 6 s
Second Óscar Pereiro 2 p. And 4 s
Third Yevgeny Petrov 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Bacares (74.7 km)

First Daniel Becke 4 p. And 6 s
Second Alessandro Spezialetti 2 p. And 4 s
Third Dmitri Fofonov 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Velefique , category 1 (56.3 km)

First Egoi Martínez 16 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 12 p.
Third Kurt Asle Arvesen 10 p.
Fourth Dmitri Fofonov 8 p.
fifth José Antonio Redondo 6 p.
Sixth Sébastien Minard 4 p.
seventh Alessandro Spezialetti 3 p.
Eighth Mauricio Ardila 2 p.
Ninth Íñigo Chaurreau 1 P.

Alto de Calar Alto , category 1 (88 km)

First Egoi Martínez 16 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 12 p.
Third Óscar Pereiro 10 p.
Fourth José Antonio Redondo 8 p.
fifth Íñigo Chaurreau 6 p.
Sixth Sébastien Minard 4 p.
seventh Dmitri Fofonov 3 p.
Eighth Kurt Asle Arvesen 2 p.
Ninth Daniel Becke 1 P.

Calar Alto observatory , category Especial (145 km)

First Igor Antón 30 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 25 p.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 20 p.
Fourth Samuel Sánchez 16 p.
fifth Carlos Sastre 12 p.
Sixth Tom Danielson 10 p.
seventh Manuel Beltran 8 p.
Eighth Luis Perez 6 p.
Ninth José Antonio Redondo 4 p.
Tenth Stijn Devolder 3 p.
Eleventh Egoi Martínez 2 p.
Twelfth Danilo Di Luca 1 P.

17th stage on September 13th from Adra to Granada (166.7 km)

Result of the 17th stage
Stage winner Tom Danielson 4:09:55 h
(40.021 km / h)
Second Alexander Vinokurov equal time
Third Samuel Sánchez + 1:10 min
Fourth Andrei Kashechkin + 1:39 min
fifth Carlos Sastre equal time
Sixth Stéphane Goubert equal time
seventh Luis Perez equal time
Eighth Alejandro Valverde equal time
Ninth José Ángel Gómez Marchante equal time
Tenth Leonardo Piepoli equal time
Intermediate result after the 17th stage
First Alexander Vinokurov 67:29:41 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:09 min
Third Carlos Sastre + 1:51 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 169 P.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 118 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 117 P.
Mountain scoring Egoi Martínez 117 P.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 117 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 81 P.
Combination scoring Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 10 p.
Third Carlos Sastre 15 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 201: 59: 16 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 15:17 min
Third Team Astana + 15:56 min

The first attacks on the stage, which is peppered with three mountains, began after just three kilometers. After a larger group of 17 riders, including Andrei Kaschetschkin , tried to solve at the beginning , the main field fell apart on the first climb. The group reached the top of the Alto de Albandon pass together.

On the descent, Eric Leblacher , Tom Danielson , Dmitri Fofonow , Lars Bak , Stéphane Goubert and Sérgio Paulinho broke away from the leading group and continued their escape. They got a maximum lead of 4:21 minutes.

By the time the Alto de Monachil began to climb, the lead had fallen to two and a half minutes, while Team CSC drove up the mountain at high speed and the group of favorites was reduced to a few drivers. Then Kashechkin attacked, followed by Luis Pérez , José Ángel Gómez Marchante and Leonardo Piepoli . Meanwhile , Alejandro Valverde , Alexander Vinokurow and Carlos Sastre watched each other and let the opponents go. In the top group, Danielson broke away from his five competitors and drove alone towards the summit. At the rear, Valverde attacked, followed by Vinokurov and Sastre, while Gómez Marchante and Kaschechkin came together in front. After another attack by Vinokourov, Valverde and Sastre had problems following. Vinokurow soon caught up with the Kaschetschkin-Gómez Marchante duo. Then Sastre had problems holding Valverde's rear wheel and had to let him go too. Danielson was the first at the top of the pass. Behind them followed 35 seconds behind the trio Kaschetschkin-Vinokurow-Gómez Marchante, another seven seconds behind Valverde, who caught up with the trio on the subsequent descent. When Valverde had caught up, Vinokourov attacked again on the exit and sat away. Five kilometers from the finish, Vinokurow caught up with Danielson and another kilometer later the group around Sastre caught up with Valverde & Co.

On the home stretch, Vinokurov left Danielson to victory without a fight. Samuel Sánchez followed in third place . Valverde reached the goal in eighth place, 1:39 minutes behind, and lost the gold jersey to Vinokourov, who received a twelve-second time bonus for second place.

Egoi Martínez took over the mountain classification despite having a tie with Pietro Caucchioli , as he was the first to climb more category 1 mountain classifications.

tasks

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Dúrcal (100 km)

First Tom Danielson 4 p. And 6 s
Second Sérgio Paulinho 2 p. And 4 s
Third Eric Leblacher 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Monachil (130.2 km)

First Eric Leblacher 4 p. And 6 s
Second Stéphane Goubert 2 p. And 4 s
Third Tom Danielson 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Albandon , Category 1 (36 km)

First Egoi Martínez 16 p.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 12 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 10 p.
Fourth Tom Danielson 8 p.
fifth Xabier Zandio 6 p.
Sixth Yevgeny Petrov 4 p.
seventh Kurt Asle Arvesen 3 p.
Eighth Stéphane Goubert 2 p.
Ninth Eric Leblacher 1 P.

Alto de Lanjarón , category 3 (86 km)

First Eric Leblacher 6 p.
Second Stéphane Goubert 4 p.
Third Sérgio Paulinho 2 p.
Fourth Tom Danielson 1 P.

Alto de Monachil , Category 1 (146.7 km)

First Tom Danielson 16 p.
Second Andrei Kashechkin 12 p.
Third Alexander Vinokurov 10 p.
Fourth José Ángel Gómez Marchante 8 p.
fifth Alejandro Valverde 6 p.
Sixth Carlos Sastre 4 p.
seventh Stéphane Goubert 3 p.
Eighth Sérgio Paulinho 2 p.
Ninth Samuel Sánchez 1 P.

18th stage on September 14th from Granada to the Sierra de la Pandera (153.1 km)

Result of the 18th stage
Stage winner Andrei Kashechkin 3:57:39 h
(38.653 km / h)
Second Alexander Vinokurov equal time
Third José Ángel Gómez Marchante + 0:30 min
Fourth Alejandro Valverde + 0:32 min
fifth Leonardo Piepoli + 0:35 min
Sixth Igor Antón equal time
seventh Samuel Sánchez + 0:46 min
Eighth Tom Danielson equal time
Ninth Luis Perez + 0:48 min
Tenth Carlos Sastre equal time
Intermediate result after the 18th stage
First Alexander Vinokurov 71:27:08 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:53 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 2:06 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 169 P.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 138 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 131 P.
Mountain scoring Egoi Martínez 129 P.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 117 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 98 P.
Combination scoring Alexander Vinokurov 8 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 11 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 213: 55: 53 h
Second Team Astana + 15:01 min
Third Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 15:44 min

On this stage, too, an attempt to break away began after four kilometers. On the initiative of Olivier Kaisen , Markel Irízar , Raúl García de Mateoss , Nicki Sørensen , Benoît Poilvet , Pierre Drancourt and Pedro Horrillo left with him. Iñigo Landaluze tried to catch up with the group, but could not achieve this and let himself fall back into the main field. The leading septet gained a maximum lead of 4:05 minutes.

At the foot of the ascent to Alto de Los Villares, the lead had dropped to 1:36 minutes and the group fell apart after an attack by García De Mateo. Only Sørensen, Poilvet and Kaisen were able to follow. After Sørensen stepped up the pace even more, Poilvet also had to let go and a trio stayed at the top. Next, Kaisen and García De Mateo could not keep up with the pace and Sørensen continued the escape alone. Iban Mayo attacked in the main draw, followed by Egoi Martínez a little later . Before reaching the top of the pass, they caught up with Sørensen, who could no longer follow their pace. Their lead over the field of around 25 drivers was 42 seconds in the mountain classification.

After a short descent, the final ascent to the Sierra de la Pandera followed, which the two outliers tackled with a margin of 18 seconds over the group behind. There Luis Pérez attacked , who, like the field, quickly caught up with the leading duo. A 15-strong leading group remained at the top before Andrei Kaschetschkin blew up the group in an attack. Thereupon Alexander Vinokurov attacked . Alejandro Valverde and Carlos Sastre were unable to follow and had to let him go. After an attack by Kaschetschkin, followed by José Ángel Gómez Marchante and Carlos Sastre, Valverde could no longer follow in the chasing group. Kashechkin then attacked one more time in the chasing trio and caught up with Vinokurov on his own. Meanwhile, Valverde Sastre had passed again.

At the finish, Vinokurov left the victory to his teammate Kaschetschkin. Gómez Marchante came in third, 30 seconds behind. Valverde followed in fourth, another two seconds behind. Vinokurow took over, since he is better placed in the overall standings, now also the first place in the combined classification, tied with Valverde.

tasks

  • 131 Danilo Di Luca - before the start of the stage, preparation for the world championship
  • 143 Daniel Becke - during the stage, stomach problems
  • 161 Paolo Bettini - before the start of the stage, preparation for the world championship

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Huelma (68.5 km)

First Benoît Poilvet 4 p. And 6 s
Second Olivier Kaisen 2 p. And 4 s
Third Raúl García de Mateoss 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Los Villares (129.3 km)

First Nicki Sørensen 4 p. And 6 s
Second Raúl García de Mateoss 2 p. And 4 s
Third Olivier Kaisen 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto de Las Encebras , Category 3 (45.6 km)

First Olivier Kaisen 6 p.
Second Markel Irízar 4 p.
Third Nicki Sørensen 2 p.
Fourth Benoît Poilvet 1 P.

Alto de Los Villares , category 2 (140.4 km)

First Egoi Martínez 10 p.
Second Iban Mayo 7 p.
Third David Arroyo 5 p.
Fourth Xabier Zandio 3 p.
fifth Vladimir Karpez 2 p.
Sixth Alejandro Valverde 1 P.

Sierra de la Pandera , category Especial (153.1 km)

First Andrei Kashechkin 30 p.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 25 p.
Third José Ángel Gómez Marchante 20 p.
Fourth Alejandro Valverde 16 p.
fifth Leonardo Piepoli 12 p.
Sixth Igor Antón 10 p.
seventh Samuel Sánchez 8 p.
Eighth Tom Danielson 6 p.
Ninth Luis Perez 4 p.
Tenth Carlos Sastre 3 p.
Eleventh Egoi Martínez 2 p.
Twelfth Joaquim Rodríguez 1 P.

19th stage on September 15th from Jaén to Ciudad Real (205.3 km)

Result of the 19th stage
Stage winner José Luis Arrieta 5:30:14 h
(37.301 km / h)
Second Dmitri Fofonov equal time
Third David Loosli + 0:02 min
Fourth Lars Bak + 0:09 min
fifth Vladimir Gusev + 0:30 min
Sixth Pieter Mertens equal time
seventh Vicente García Acosta equal time
Eighth Aketza Peña equal time
Ninth Aurélien Clerc + 11:16 min
Tenth Thor Hushovd equal time
Intermediate result after the 19th stage
First Alexander Vinokurov 77:08:38 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 0:53 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 2:06 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 175 p.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 138 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 131 P.
Mountain scoring Egoi Martínez 129 P.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 117 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 98 P.
Combination scoring Alexander Vinokurov 8 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 11 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 230: 49: 37 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 15:44 min
Third Team Astana + 26:07 min

In contrast to the previous days, the stage started very calmly and the first attacks only started after 38 kilometers. After 48 kilometers, Vladimir Gussew , Vicente García Acosta , José Luis Arrieta and Aketza Peña pulled away. A little later they received support from David Loosli , Lars Bak , Pieter Mertens and Dmitri Fofonow , so that in the end there were eight riders in the group. The octet continuously increased its lead to a maximum of 12:05 minutes. Eleven kilometers before the finish, the drivers in the leading group began to look for the decision. An attack by Bak seven kilometers from the finish then blew up the group. After initial problems, Arrieta, Loosli and Fofonow caught up with him two kilometers from the finish, while the remaining four drivers had nothing to do with the outcome of the race.

In the end, José Luis Arrieta proved to be the strongest driver in the group and secured his second Vuelta victory after 1993, ahead of Fofonow and Loosli. The peloton reached the finish line 11:16 minutes behind.

Egoi Martínez , the leader in the mountains classification, already has the jersey for sure should he arrive in Madrid .

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Las Viñas de Peñallana (50 km)

First Lars Bak 4 p. And 6 s
Second Vicente García Acosta 2 p. And 4 s
Third José Luis Arrieta 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Puertollano (161.2 km)

First Dmitri Fofonov 4 p. And 6 s
Second Vladimir Gusev 2 p. And 4 s
Third Lars Bak 1 P. and 2 s

Mountain ratings

Alto del Parque Natural de Andújar , category 2 (75 km)

First David Loosli 10 p.
Second José Luis Arrieta 7 p.
Third Lars Bak 5 p.
Fourth Aketza Peña 3 p.
fifth Vladimir Gusev 2 p.
Sixth Vicente García Acosta 1 P.

Alto de Sierra Madrona , Category 3 (102.6 km)

First Pieter Mertens 6 p.
Second Aketza Peña 4 p.
Third David Loosli 2 p.
Fourth José Luis Arrieta 1 P.

Alto del Tamaral , category 3 (117 km)

First Pieter Mertens 6 p.
Second Dmitri Fofonov 4 p.
Third Aketza Peña 2 p.
Fourth Lars Bak 1 P.

20th stage on September 16 from Rivas-Futura to Rivas-Vaciamadrid (27.5 km; EZF )

Result of the 20th stage
Stage winner Alexander Vinokurov 33:39 min
(49.034 km / h)
Second Samuel Sánchez + 0:06 min
Third Alejandro Valverde + 0:19 min
Fourth László Bodrogi + 0:26 min
fifth Vladimir Karpez + 0:30 min
Sixth Stuart O'Grady + 0:32 min
seventh Carlos Sastre + 0:44 min
Eighth Vladimir Gusev + 0:49 min
Ninth Torsten Hiekmann + 0:55 min
Tenth Sébastien Rosseler + 1:00 min
Intermediate result after the 20th stage
First Alexander Vinokurov 77:42:17 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 1:12 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 3:12 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 175 p.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 163 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 147 P.
Mountain scoring Egoi Martínez 129 P.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 117 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 98 P.
Combination scoring Alexander Vinokurov 8 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 12 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 232: 34: 15 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 15:28 min
Third Team Astana + 25:36 min

The second individual time trial was 27.5 kilometers long and the profile was flat.

The first driver to start at 11:33 a.m. was Cyril Lemoine from Crédit Agricole , then 135th and last in the overall standings, already 3:17:18 hours behind the leader Alexander Vinokurow . Vinokurow was the last to start at 2:06 p.m.

The first target time was set by the Belgian Sébastien Rosseler from Quick Step-Innergetic , who was sixteenth on the track. His time of 34:39 minutes, however, was undercut by other drivers a little later. The Hungarian László Bodrogi held the fastest time with 34:05 minutes until the top runners in the overall standings took to the track .

Alejandro Valverde set the absolute best time of 14:18 minutes in the first split among the top 5 drivers in the overall standings. Vinokourov followed just three seconds behind. Carlos Sastre was 18 seconds behind, Andrei Kaschetschkin 26 and José Ángel Gómez Marchante 37.

At the second intermediate time measurement point Vinokurow had taken the lead with a time of 26:18 minutes. Valverde followed, twelve seconds behind.

At the finish, Vinokourov secured his third success in the course of the tour. Samuel Sánchez surprisingly followed in second place, six seconds behind. Third place went to Alejandro Valverde, who lost another 19 seconds to the supposed overall winner Vinokurow.

tasks

Intermediate results

1st intermediate time measuring point (11.3 km)

First Alejandro Valverde 14:18 min
Second Alexander Vinokurov + 0:03 min
Third Vladimir Gusev + 0:09 min
Fourth Stuart O'Grady + 0:12 min
fifth Vladimir Karpez + 0:12 min
Sixth Samuel Sánchez + 0:13 min
seventh Torsten Hiekmann + 0:14 min
Eighth Carlos Sastre + 0:18 min
Ninth László Bodrogi + 0:20 min
Tenth Sébastien Rosseler + 0:22 min

2nd intermediate time measuring point (20.5 km)

First Alexander Vinokurov 26:18 min
Second Samuel Sánchez + 0:09 min
Third Alejandro Valverde + 0:12 min
Fourth László Bodrogi + 0:23 min
fifth Vladimir Karpez + 0:25 min
Sixth Stuart O'Grady + 0:28 min
seventh Carlos Sastre + 0:36 min
Eighth Vladimir Gusev + 0:40 min
Ninth Torsten Hiekmann + 0:43 min
Tenth Sébastien Rosseler + 0:45 min

21st stage on September 17th in Madrid (142.2 km)

Result of the 21st stage
Stage winner Erik Zabel 3:40:47 h
(38.644 km / h)
Second Thor Hushovd equal time
Third Aurélien Clerc equal time
Fourth Robert Forster equal time
fifth Stuart O'Grady equal time
Sixth Francisco José Ventoso equal time
seventh Fred Rodriguez equal time
Eighth Marco Velo equal time
Ninth Claudio Corioni equal time
Tenth Davide Viganò equal time
Final result after the 21st stage
First Alexander Vinokurov 81:23:07 h
Second Alejandro Valverde + 1:12 min
Third Andrei Kashechkin + 3:12 min
Scoring Thor Hushovd 199 P.
Second Alexander Vinokurov 163 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 147 P.
Mountain scoring Egoi Martínez 129 P.
Second Pietro Caucchioli 117 P.
Third Alejandro Valverde 98 P.
Combination scoring Alexander Vinokurov 8 p.
Second Alejandro Valverde 8 p.
Third Andrei Kashechkin 15 p.
Team evaluation Discovery Channel 243: 36: 42 h
Second Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears + 15:28 min
Third Team Astana + 25:33 min

As expected, the journey to Madrid began very calmly. Only after 50 kilometers tried Sébastien Rosseler , Kjell Carlström and László Bodrogi . Bodrogi broke off the attempt in the interests of his team and the other two riders were soon overtaken by the peloton under the pace dictated by Relax-GAM Fuenlabrada .

The race actually began with the entrance to the Paseo de la Castellana in Madrid. On the second of a total of eight laps, a seven-man leading group took off in which Óscar Pereiro , Luis Pérez , Christopher Horner , Frédéric Bessy , Pierre Drancourt , Jorge García Marín and Ángel Vallejo were. But she could never really break away from the field and was caught seven kilometers from the finish. Thereupon Kevin De Weert dared another attack, but he was also unsuccessful.

In the final sprint, Erik Zabel secured his second day's win ahead of Thor Hushovd and Aurélien Clerc .

Alexander Vinokurov won his first three-week tour, while Hushovd also secured the points classification of the Vuelta after winning the green jersey in the Tour de France . In the end, Egoi Martínez was ahead in the mountains classification. After the 21st stages, Vinokurow also took the lead in the combined ranking, tied with Alejandro Valverde .

Intermediate sprints

1st intermediate sprint in Morata de Tajuña (33.1 km)

First Thor Hushovd 4 p. And 6 s
Second Eric Leblacher 2 p. And 4 s
Third Fabien Patanchon 1 P. and 2 s

2nd intermediate sprint in Fuenlabrada (66.8 km)

First Daniel Moreno 4 p. And 6 s
Second David George 2 p. And 4 s
Third José Miguel Elías 1 P. and 2 s