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Nozal takes command at the Vuelta
Now there's no doubt at all who's the strong man of the Vuelta a España.
After some pesky questions regarding who was the true leader at ONCE, Isidro Nozal roared to his second time-trial victory in little more than a week and firmly established himself as the man to beat with nine days left in the 21-stage Vuelta.
Nozal covered the windy 53.3km course - the Vuelta's longest in 35 years - in 1 hour, 2 minutes, 3 seconds (51.5 kph) and relegated time-trial specialist David Millar (Cofidis) into second place yet again by 13 seconds.
No one else could come within 40 seconds. Nozal’s closest GC challenger was teammate Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano, at 1:15 slower in sixth place. Nozal widened his lead over second-place Galdeano to 3:03 and pushed more than five minutes ahead of U.S. Postal's Roberto Heras and Manuel Beltran, now third and fourth respectively.
"I couldn't believe it today," said Nozal, the latest Spanish revelation in a year that's seen one new face after another make its presence known. "There were such small differences (to Millar), and the wind made it very difficult. I could feel the last few days in my legs, but I pushed as hard as I could."
Fighting for leftovers
Nozal was out to prove that his victory at the Zaragoza in stage 6 was no fluke. He was also intent on quieting the critics who were wondering who was really the leader at ONCE: Nozal or Galdeano?
With two summit finishes on tap this weekend, Nozal's impressive victory gave the 25-year-old a bigger cushion against the climbers going into the final week.
"We'll see if we can keep the leader's jersey until Madrid," Nozal said. "I have a lot more motivation after what's happened in this time trial, beating Millar who was focusing just on this. Now we'll see if I can keep it until Madrid."
Postal's Heras had a great time trial, conceding only 1:45 to Nozal on terrain that favored the ONCE rider, but it's likely too late for the 2000 Vuelta champion.
With La Pandera on tap Sunday and the long grinding climb up Sierra Nevada on Tuesday (after a rest day on Monday), Heras is poised to move up only if the ONCE boys suffer a major meltdown. As for Beltran, he couldn't quite match his impressive ride at Zaragoza and gave up 2:36 and fell to fourth at 5:39 back.
"This time gap will make it easier for us at Pandera and Sierra Nevada," Nozal said. "I don't see much danger if I can ride steady in those stages. Now I can play with this margin I have over the others."
Fassa Bortolo's Dario Frigo and Aitor Gonzalez - both of whom lost time in Thursday's echelons - suffered once again as wind picked up late in the day, with Frigo languishing in 37th at 4:36 slower and defending champion Gonzalez limping in at 65th at 5:48.
iBanesto.com profited from Fassa's difficulties, pushing Francisco Mancebo into fifth overall at 7:12 back and Unai Osa into 10th at 10:10 back. Alejandro Valverde (Kelme) made up some of the time he lost Thursday, finishing 13th at 2:44 slower and bouncing ahead of Michael Rasmussen (Rabobank) into seventh overall at 8:44.
Americans put down respectable rides, with Levi Leipheimer (Rabobank) at ninth at 2:14 slower. Floyd Landis (USPS) was 12th at 2:37, George Hincapie (USPS) was 22nd at 3:33 and Bobby Julich (Telekom) 30th at 4:03.
Angel Casero (Bianchi) didn't take the start. The 2001 winner arrived in Gijón in good shape with aspirations of finishing on the podium, but a knee injury derailed his chances and he suffered through the Pyrenees.
ONCE's going-away party
With ONCE fading to black at the end of the season, the team couldn't write a better script for its hopes of a late-game sponsor stepping in to save the team for next season.
ONCE's sport director, Manolo Saiz, was passionate about the team's efforts in this Vuelta, and a tearful Nozal collapsed into Saiz' arms after his dramatic performance.
"We are seeing a new star born at this Vuelta," Saiz said of Nozal. "For many people he is unknown, but for those of us who knew him, we knew he was strong, dedicated. A rider like him sometimes just needs confidence. Now he has it. Who knows how far he can go."
Galdeano was quick to tip his hat to his younger teammate. Galdeano came into the Vuelta as the designated team leader, but Nozal's consistent strength has forced Galdeano to step aside.
"I've been okay, but Nozal has been superior," Galdeano admitted. "We've found that Nozal is in super form, and now we have to work to help him win in Madrid."
As Saiz said earlier in the week, the leader of the team is ONCE. Everyone's hoping if Nozal can hang on to win, the team will be around a little longer.
Results are now posted.
To see how this 53.3km flat individual time trial developed, just bring up our Live Update Window.
