"We knew how dangerous the descent would be. That was a nervous finish and we were trying to win the stage."

Those were the words of Astana's Luis Leon Sanchez after stage eight at the Vuelta a España. Sanchez worked with teammates Andrey Zeits and Diego Rosa to protect leaders Fabio Aru and Mikel Landa in the final 50km of racing action in Spain on Saturday.

On a descent that passed through villages and market centers, on a descent that was not all mountains and trees, but instead parking lots and traffic islands, on streets as wide as 20 riders across and on streets narrow enough for just one rider at a time. Astana Pro Team attacked on this descent, with Sanchez at the front, on the roads he knows well, to change the composition of riders at the front of the race and to eliminate the power of strong teams to control the action.

Sanchez and Zeits succeeded in bringing chaos to the race and keeping Aru and Landa protected from its consequences. Aru and Landa finished in the same time as stage winner Jasper Stuyven of Belgium, as did Rosa and Sanchez. So too did Zeits.

Sunday's stage nine is a 4k climb to a category one finish.