Eddie Dunbar wins stage 11 of La Vuelta a Espana for his first Grand Tour victory

Eddie Dunbar has won stage 11 of the La Vuelta a Espana at Campus Tecnológico Cortizo, Padrón, his first Grand Tour win.
The Irish cyclist from Team Jayco – AlUla was a member of the breakaway group of more than 30 riders who started 95km from the line, and Dunbar found the ideal window to attack on the last kilometre and beat the chasers, finishing ahead of Belgium’s Quinten Hermans and Britain’s Max Poole with a time of 3:44:52. Dunbar moves up to 18th place in general classification.
“Today came an opportunity I didn’t expect. I can’t believe it,” Dunbar said. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in a scenario like this to be honest, I was just using my experience. I was suffering a bit in that steep climb, then I realised everyone else was, that let me take a back seat. I displayed my cards and decided I’d gamble and back my finish. I know how to finish, after a hard race I can sprint, but I knew I had to go long. Going with 600 to go is a bit long for a sprint, that’s what I had to do to win. I can’t believe it.”
The battle for the red jersey took a new turn in the Puerto Cruxeiras. Primoz Roglic (RedBull-Borra) launched an attack, initially followed only up Enric Mas (Movistar). Then all the top riders in general classification caught up with the Slovenian except leader Ben O’Connor, who was trapped.
The Australian, who found some of his Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale teammates on the descent, limited the damage and still has a 3′53′’ lead over Roglic.
More to follow …