Astana has fast, stressful day at La Vuelta Ciclista a Espana stage 11

ASTANA. KAZINFORM - It was expected that stage 11 (Mombuey - Ribeira Sacra. Luintra, 207,8 km) would be a tough one for the whole peloton due to its hard profile with 4 categorized and much more uncategorized climbs on the distance. But for Astana Pro Team the day was more stressful because of the chasing the team had to do after its leader Miguel Angel Lopez has changed his bike, Kazinform has learnt from the club's press service.

Yeah, something happened with my bike, it was a mechanical problem, so I had to stop and to change the bike. It was a wrong moment for that since the pace of the group was absolutely crazy and the peloton split in groups. So, it took time for our car to reach me. So, I lost some time, but I think we controlled the situation. My teammates waited for me to pick me up and to lead me back into the peloton. Indeed, we had to chase hardly to come back in the group, but we did it calmly and without nervous. I want to thank my team for this great support. Our team showed we are really strong, said Miguel Angel Lopez.

Stage 11 suited really well for a breakaway, so many riders wanted to escape and to use this chance. This was the reason the speed in the group was around 50 km/h during the first two hours with no one group could taking an important advantage for a long time. In this situation Miguel Angel Lopez got a mechanical - a small stone entered the chain and blocked it. Astana leader was forced to stop and to change the bike. But, the teammates did their best to bring Lopez back in the main group.

In the final, in the GC contenders group there were some attacks, but all came together to the finish line, 2 minutes behind the stage winner.
The Italian Alessandro De Marchi win stage 11 ahead of Jhonatan Restrepo. Both riders made part of a 19-men breakaway. They attacked in the final, taking a gap, big enough to play the stage. Astana's Omar Fraile also was in that breakaway, but after spending a lot of energy chasing the peloton and helping Miguel Angel Lopez, he was not able to follow the decisive attack.

Simon Yates still leads the red jersey of the Vuelta a España GC leader. Miguel Angel Lopez is 7th (+0.27) in GC and is leading the best young rider classification.

Stage 12 will be held tomorrow: 181,1 km from Mondoñedo to Faro de Estaca de Bares. Mañón.