Today's stage: 175 km sprint stage finishing near the beach in Playas de Orihuela
Who won today's stage? Chris Sutton (Team Sky) was the best of those who survived the final 8% hill during the sprint, taking his biggest career win and continuing Team Sky's positive momentum from the Tour de France. It was a huge day for the team as double Tour stage winner Edvald Boasson Hagen took the Vattenfall Cyclassics, Germany's biggest one-day race.
What matters in the GC race? Daniele Bennati (Leopard-Trek) assumed the leader's red jersey from his teammate Jakob Fuglsang. Defending champion Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas-Cannondale) is 3rd and leads among the GC favorites.
What matters in the other competitions?
Green Jersey (Points, Sprinter Competition) – Stage winner Sutton is the first leader in this competition followed by Vicente Reynes (Omega Pharma-Lotto) and Marcel Kittle (Skil-Shimano).
Polka Dot Jersey (King of the Mountains) – The Polka Dot Jersey in the Vuelta is blue spots instead of the red at the Tour de France. Paul Martens (Rabobank) leads after taking the climb from the breakaway.
White Jersey (Allround) – Instead of the young rider competition, there is an allround competition at the Vuelta. It is calculated by adding the position in all three other competitions (GC, Points, KoM) and the lowest number takes it. It is usually won by either the winner or a significant overall contender. GC leader Bennati currently leads.
Biggest surprise: Sutton's attack to win the stage comes as a shock, but nothing was more surprising than seeing the difficulty of the final hill. This was thought to be a garden-variety bunch sprint but none of the field sprinters really threatened for the win.
Biggest disappointment: Though Mark Cavendish (HTC-High Road) really had no chance to win this sprint with this finish, it was disappointing that his leadout train never formed. Cavendish only had Tony Martin with him in the final 10 kms, a stark contrast from normal, when anywhere from five to all eight teammates are up front to see him through.
Other items of note: Not much going on today at the race. As expected, the Andalucia team got someone in the break, just as FDJ did at the Tour de France... Matt Goss (HTC-High Road) abandoned early on. Speculation centers on illness or bad recovery from riding the Tour de France last month.
What is coming tomorrow? Another sprint stage, but with a category 3 climb just 8 km from the end that could drop some of the field sprinters. This stage looks tailor made for the talents of 21 year old Liquigas-Cannondale sprinter Peter Sagan.
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