Pavel Bittner sprints to second on stage 17 of La Vuelta

Pavel Bittner sprinted to yet another podium result on stage 17 of La Vuelta, taking second in very wet conditions in Santander after teammate Max Poole jumped clear in the final two kilometres covering a move and finding himself out front, only to be caught in the final few hundred metres.

Team dsm-firmenich PostNL had to work hard during the stage to get the race back together after the day’s early break put up a strong fight at the front of the peloton and then the rain started to fall, making conditions quite tricky out on the road. Helping to drive the pace on the front of the peloton, the guys gradually brought the break back to half a minute with 10 kilometres to race. From here a number of attacks went clear from the peloton, including Poole, establishing a new trio as the race headed into the final few kilometres. This took the pressure off in the chase behind but Poole was caught within sight of the finishing straight, as Bittner came by to take second on the line.

Bittner said of the day: “My teammates did a really good job keeping me in a good position and pulling in the last 40 kilometres. I was suffering even in the wheels so I have no idea how hard it was at the front. Then in the final I tried to stay calm. Max jumped on Mauro’s wheel which was good as he could surf his wheel and sprint if needed at the end. Behind, I found the wheel of Kaden heading into the sketchy last corner. I was waiting and when he started his sprint I tried to go around but I didn’t have the time or the speed. Hats off to him, it was a really hard day today.”

Team dsm-firmenich PostNL coach Phil West added: “It was a good day. We planned the stage to set up Pavel for the sprint but it was a tricky combination with a couple of difficult climbs in the middle and a very rolling but technical parcours especially with the rain. So in the end it’s been a really tough day but I’m happy with how the boys rode. It got a bit closer in the final than I would have liked but the upside was that it kept the peloton more under control and then we were able to bring Pavel in for a good sprint. Max was really sharp to shut down a late attack from Mauro Schmid so there was no stress there and then it was another strong sprint from Pavel even if he couldn’t quite get there on the line.”