In the third stage of the Vuelta a España, finishing in Ceres, Jonas Vingegaard hoped Mads Pedersen would win, but David Gaudu managed to surprise everyone and conquer the stage. The Danish Visma rider participated in the sprint mainly to avoid losing time in the general classification and to prevent Ciccone from moving ahead, who was dangerous in the rankings: for this reason, Pedersen's victory would have been perfect for him.

"The plan was to attack to avoid falling behind – Vingegaard explained - especially because we didn't want to lose time. We were quite convinced that there would be gaps in the group and if you decide you want to sprint, then you must be at the front".

The Dane wasn't even thinking about the podium, and for him the goal was simply to arrive with the best group, without conceding seconds to his rivals.

"Perhaps I didn't expect to be racing for the podium, but yesterday was fantastic and I had good legs again. It was a fantastic result and obviously says something about the fact that I've become more aggressive".

Both Vingegaard and Pedersen are Danish, so for the two-time Tour de France winner, his compatriot's victory would have been pleasing. "I knew I couldn't beat Mads, so in one way or another I was also hoping he could win. I did the finale I wanted, my plan was to stay on Pedersen's wheel. I couldn't pass him and even if I had good legs, they wouldn't have been enough to do better than him. Gaudu wins because he doesn't brake in the curve: he dives like a striker. Perhaps it wasn't the coolest move, but cycling is like that. You have to recognize he had the courage to do what he did".