Chapter 418 203: Either Lose the Red Jersey, or Widen the Overall Time Gap Again

"Huang, congratulations on the opening performance of your first-ever Vuelta a España.

Not only did you win the stage right out of the gate, but you also put on all four leader's jerseys. Could you share your post-race thoughts with us?

After today's race, seeing as you've opened up a considerable time gap on the general classification riders from other teams, are you now more determined and confident about winning the overall title at the Vuelta a España?"

After the S1 Stage ended, Huang Chong accepted the interview from the race organizer's reporter only after receiving the champion's trophy and putting on each of the four leader's jerseys.

He didn't think much of the feat of wearing all four leader's jerseys simultaneously.

Because, in reality, it wasn't what it seemed.

The time trial stage didn't generate any climbing or sprint points. So even though he was wearing the Polka Dot Jersey and the Green Jersey, he was essentially in the same position as every other rider, with no extra points to his name.

He answered bluntly:

"I'm sticking to my initial opinion.

The upcoming stages of the Vuelta a España are extremely difficult. Today's time trial was just a warm-up for the riders.

A temporary lead doesn't mean I can hold this time advantage all the way to the end.

All I can say is that in the races to come, I hope I can defend the small advantage I gained today!"

And just as Jimmy had analyzed post-race, the two race days following the S1 Stage, both of which also took place in Portugal, were stages for the sprinters.

To be honest, because the Vuelta a España has so many climbs, very few top-tier sprinters attend.

Van Aert and Groves from the Alpecin Team were already the biggest favorites for the sprint finish stages.

The S2 Stage ran from Cascais to Ourém in Portugal, covering a total distance of 194km.

Although it was hilly terrain, with the route featuring numerous short, rolling climbs and two Fourth Category Climbs, this level of difficulty made it impossible for the peloton to drop the sprinters.

And as it turned out, in the final gentle downhill and flat-road sprint, Van Aert and Groves were in a league of their own among the sprinters competing in this year's Vuelta a España.

Once they launched their sprints 200 meters from the finish line, no other rider stood a chance of winning.

But the Visma Team lost today because their lead-out man went too early, forcing Van Aert into an overly long sprint. In the end, he was overtaken just before the finish line by Groves, who had been cannily drafting behind him, lying in wait.

Huang Chong, naturally, crossed the line with the sprinters with no time difference, but he didn't participate in the final bunch sprint.

This was because a crash had just occurred at a corner about 2km from the finish, just as the main group was frantically accelerating.

Two riders each from the DSM and Ineos Grenadiers Team were caught up in it.

Under these circumstances, even if he had been in a good position near the finish, Aldag would never have let him join the sprint.

Instead, it was his personal domestique, Vlasov, who seemed to have recovered well after withdrawing from the Tour de France due to injury. He made a token effort in the sprint and even managed to secure ninth place in the S2 Stage.

For a Climber, finishing in the top ten of a sprint was a pretty impressive performance.

After the S2 Stage, the S3 Stage would be the last race day held in Portugal.

It ran from Lousã to Branco Castle (Castelo Branco), covering a total distance of 191.2km.

Topographically, this stage was clearly more difficult than yesterday's.

Although there were still only two officially categorized climbs along the entire route, one of them was a second-category climb.

However, this climb, the Teixeira Pass (Alto de Teixeira) located in Portugal's Central Mountain Range, was positioned at the 81km mark, right in the middle of the stage.

Therefore, even though it was 17.4km long with an average gradient of 3.2%, rising to 5.4% in the final 3km, it still wasn't enough to thin out the field.

In the end, as the riders approached the finish of the S3 Stage, it was another showdown between Van Aert of the Visma Team and Groves.

But today, the rider who had the last laugh was Van Aert.

Evidently, after losing yesterday, the Visma Team had adjusted its lead-out tactics for the finish.

However, even though Van Aert evened the score, he had lost to Groves at the intermediate sprint point. His final sprint points total was still lower than Groves's, so the Dash King Green Jersey remained with Groves.

As for Huang Chong, although Van Aert had clawed back 16 seconds in time bonuses with a stage win and a second-place finish over the two hilly stages, Huang Chong still held a 1-second advantage. Thus, he kept the overall leader's Red Jersey.

The Vuelta a España's Red Jersey is the equivalent of the Tour de France's Yellow Jersey.

For every additional day a rider wears it, they are rewarded with 500 euros and 20 UCI points.

The Polka Dot Jersey and Green Jersey, on the other hand, come with a 100 euro reward.

The White Jersey is the least valuable, earning a rider only 70 euros for each day it's worn.

But although Huang Chong lost the Polka Dot Jersey and Green Jersey in the S2 Stage, he still held on to the Red Jersey and the White Jersey.

So, as long as Van Aert couldn't overturn his lead in the general classification, Huang Chong could continue earning extra prize money and points each day, even if he was just coasting along with the pack.

However, once the three race days in Portugal were over and the riders officially returned to Spain for the S4 Stage, it would be virtually impossible for Van Aert, currently second in the general classification, to close the gap on Huang Chong.