MADRID, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- Enric Mas (Movistar) declined to wear the Vuelta a Espana leader's red jersey he inherited on Saturday after Tadej Pogacar crashed out of the race, but the Mallorcan underlined his claim to it with victory in Sunday's ninth stage.
Mas was the strongest rider at the end of a tough stage featuring six categorized climbs and finishing with the first-category ascent of the Alto de Aitan.
Pogacar's UAE-Team Emirates teammate Pavel Sivakov animated the race with a solo attack on the final climb, but was caught with four and a half kilometers remaining by the group containing the main favorites, including Mas, Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Felix Gall (Decathlon) and Oscar Onley (Netcompany-INEOS Cycling Team).
Gall attempted to attack but appeared to fade in the closing kilometers, leaving Mas and Onley to move clear at the front, with Roglic making a big effort to stay in contention.
Mas held off the challenge of Onley, who arguably has the quicker finish, with the pair finishing 12 seconds ahead of Roglic and Gall a further six seconds back.
The win extended Mas' overall lead to one minute and 18 seconds over Roglic and one minute and 39 seconds over Gall.
Monday is a rest day, while Tuesday's 185-kilometer 10th stage over rolling terrain to Elche de la Sierra is unlikely to affect the overall standings, although high temperatures could be a factor in southeastern Spain. ■
