Juan Ayuso will leave the UAE Emirates team at the end of the season: in the finale of this story, there are disappointments but also some satisfactions, like today's victory at the Los Corrales de Buelna finish line. In a two-man sprint with Javier Romo (Movistar), at the end of a difficult breakaway, Ayuso once again demonstrated his full value, not only for his current team, but also for Lidl-Trek where he will race next year.

"After such a tough day, you never feel sure of winning," Ayuso said after the award ceremony. "That's why I had to play my cards well in the finale. I had to make my opponent a bit nervous: the team car had told me to behave that way. Not collaborating to the maximum is something I don't like, but sometimes you have to play smart, and that's what I did. I've already won a stage in this Vuelta, while Romo would have had to work harder at the end if he wanted to stay ahead and try to win."

The stage victory in Cantabria has a very deep meaning for Ayuso, who raced for a local team as a junior and remembers those moments with affection. "I still have friends here. And I know this finish line well since I was a child. I knew how to set up my sprint, and it went perfectly. This is also Matxin's land, and I used to come here on vacation. These are places I'm very attached to, I feel like I'm in my second home."

Javier Romo also wanted to win, but Ayuso was more cunning and could make the difference in the hardest part of the climb. "Three kilometers from the end is the toughest part of the climb, and that's where there's a bit more tailwind. Then I was lucky to have Soler who did an excellent job, setting the pace and trying to control a large breakaway. So it was thanks to him that I could more or less keep the race under control until I decided to attack. So thanks go to all my teammates."