The Vuelta a España might be all but over as far as the fight for the overall victory is concerned, but the battle is still on for the final podium spots.

Race leader Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) only had to follow the wheel Wednesday to protect his 4:30 lead and watch the other top riders duke it out in the four-climb, 165.6km 17th stage.

"Another day done," Heras said after finishing ninth in a small chase group. "My teammates were sensational and I felt good. The race was very fast with a lot of attacks, but we controlled them without problems."

Carlos García Quesada (Comunidad Valenciana) grunted his way to an impressive solo win while Francisco Mancebo (Illes Balears) proved he still has some life in him by finishing second.

García Quesada bridged up to the day’s major break and later attacked on the slopes of the Cat. 1 Puerto de Navacerrada to pass Mancebo and Santos González (Phonak) on the steepest portion of the climb.

While there were no major changes in the top five, the fight for the podium is tightening up. Denis Menchov (Rabobank) and Carlos Sastre (CSC) retained their second and third places, at 4:30 and 4:50 back, respectively, but Mancebo and García Quesada moved to within striking distance. Fourth-place Mancebo is now only 1:01 off the podium at 5:51 back with fifth-place García Quesada just 1:32 off the podium at 6:22.

"It’s obvious we have to keep fighting every day because there’s still a chance I can finish on the podium," said Mancebo, second on the day at 46 seconds back. "There are still some complicated stages to attack, so we’re not done yet."

Hilly affair

The 165.5km stage from El Espinar to La Granja de San Ildefonso dipped up and around the rugged mountains north of Madrid. The course featured one category-three climb early on and another category-two climb at the halfway mark, but the day’s main feature was two passes up the Cat. 1 Navacerrada climb.

The final passage went up the steepest side of the mountain before turning northwest to the finish line at what once was the summer palace for Spanish kings. Fine weather welcomed the riders, but it wasn’t enough to keep Fabio Sacchi (Fassa Bortolo) and Sebastian Chavanel (Bouygues Telecom) in the race. Sacchi didn’t start and Chavanel abandoned en route, leaving 138 riders in the ever-thinner Vuelta peloton.

There was plenty of action early on, with a big group finally extracting itself: On board were David Blanco (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana; Joan Horrach (Sp), Illes Balears; Koos Moerenhout (Nl), Davitamon-Lotto; Aitor Gonzalez (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi; Stijn Devolder (B), Discovery Channel; Pablo Lastras (Sp), Illes Balears; Gilberto Simoni (I), Lampre; Eladio Jimenez (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana; Javier Pascual Rodriguez (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana; Constantino Zaballa (Sp), Saunier Duval; David Lopez (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi; Rik Verbrugghe (B), Quick Step; and Manuel Calvente (Sp), CSC.

Comunidad Valenciana’s Blanco was the highest placed on GC, in 14th place at 22:31. The cooperation ended on the Cat. 2 Puerto de la Morcuera and some of the attacking riders stayed off the front while several riders bridged out from the peloton, most notably Mancebo, Santos Gonzalez (Phonak) and García Quesada.

The race changed gears on the final climb up the Navacerrada. García Quesada went on the attack to immediately shatter any order in the lead group. Mancebo, González and Cuesta tried to follow, but the winning margin was set.

García Quesada chugged over the summit with a lead of 1:40 on the chasing Mancebo and Gonzalez. A chase group with Heras, Sastre, Menchov and others came across at 2:19 back.

Mancebo, who lives and trains in Madrid, knew the roads better than García Quesada, who lives in southern Spain. But he couldn’t catch his rival on the fast 22km to the finish line. García Quesada came across the line kissing a gold medallion given to him by his grandmother to score his team’s second stage win of this Vuelta.

"I went as hard as I could because I really wanted to win a stage in this Vuelta," he said moments after claiming his first Vuelta stage of his career. "I was frustrated at how the race was unfolding for me in terms of the GC because I had hoped for me."

Heras on cruise control, Danielson slips back

With García Quesada and Mancebo doing the tango up the road, Sastre decided to take matters into his own hands with a blistering attack out of the main bunch with about 6km to go to the summit.

Sastre was interested in protecting his hold on third place on the podium, but the dogfight for the top five had adverse affects on Tom Danielson (Discovery Channel) and his hopes of finishing in the top 10.

Sastre’s acceleration fractured the main bunch, with only Menchov, Heras, Mauricio Ardila (Davitamon-Lotto), Marcos Serrano (Liberty), Ruben Plaza (Comunidad Valenciana) and Oscar Sevilla (T-Mobile) following.

Danielson couldn’t react and led a group of 10 riders across the line in 24th place at 5:04 back. Discovery teammate Stijn Devolder and compatriot Christian Vande Velde (CSC) were also there to lend a hand driving home the bunch, but Danielson lost some valuable time. He slipped from eighth to 10th, now 15:39 back. Moving ahead of him were Gonzalez and Juan Miguel Mercardo (Quick Step).

"I just had a bad day," Danielson said. "This is all new so I am not so upset. I have to fight now for the top 10."

While Danielson was struggling, Heras rode without any major problems. Liberty’s stalwart Michele Scarponi also struggled, but Serrano was there to protect Heras’s flanks in the wake of Sastre’s attack.

"Quesada and Mancebo attacked well, but for them to get one minute on us isn’t a problem," said Liberty Seguros sport director Manolo Saiz. "It’s key that Roberto always has a teammate at his side. Tomorrow will be more of the same."

The 60th Vuelta continues Thursday with the 197km 18th stage starting and ending in Avila. The hilly profile takes in five rated climbs, with the Cat. 2 Puerto de Navalmoral at 20km to go. There’s a short climb along the ramparts of the walled city at Avila to the finish line.

Stage Results
1. Carlos Garcia Quesada (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana, 3:51:00
2. Francisco Mancebo (Sp), Illes Balears, 0:47
3. Santos Gonzalez (Sp), Phonak, 0:48
4. Mauricio Ardila (Col), Davitamon-Lotto, 1:37
5. Ruben Plaza (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana, 1:37
6. Oscar Sevilla (Sp), T-Mobile, 1:37
7. Denis Menchov (Rus), Rabobank, 1:40
8. Carlos Sastre (Sp), CSC, 1:40
9. Roberto Heras (Sp), Liberty Seguros, 1:40
10. Marcos Serrano (Sp), Liberty Seguros, 1:42
FullResults

Overall
1. Roberto Heras (Sp), Liberty Seguros, 69:21:16
2. Denis Menchov (Rus), Rabobank, 4:30
3. Carlos Sastre (Sp), CSC, 4:50
4. Francisco Mancebo (Sp), Illes Balears, 5:51
5. Carlos Garcia Quesada (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana, 6:22
6. Oscar Sevilla (Sp), T-Mobile, 11:13
7. Ruben Plaza (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana, 11:36
8. Santos Gonzalez (Sp), Phonak, 13:28
9. Juan Miguel Mercado (Sp), Quickstep, 15:19
10. Tom Danielson (USA), Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team, 15:39
FullResults

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