Alberto Contador lost a bit of time to Jaoquim Rodriguez and Chris Froome in today's stage. However, the Spaniard insisted that he was satisfied with the result as he had gained time on Alejandro Valverde.

It was a day of mixed emotions for Alberto Contador in the Vuelta a Espana. On one hand he increased his lead over second-placed Alejandro Valverde by 22 seconds and now leads his compatriot by 42 seconds.

On the other hand he saw a resurgent Chris Froome take back 7 seconds. Contador claimed that the Brit's performance came as no surprise and that the overall balance was positive.

“There were incredibly steep sections on that climb," he said. "It was never ending. Only riding 100 metres seemed very long.

"I’m happy with the result. Some riders have taken a bit of time on me, but not much. I’ve gained more over Alejandro [Valverde]. I knew that Froome suffered up to Aralar because it was the day after the time trial. Some riders pay for these efforts.

"I like tomorrow’s stage. There’ll be a lot of attacks, I’m sure. Today I had three team-mates with me and one was in the front group. We have a great team.”

While Contador battled against the GC riders, his teammate Oliver Zaugg nearly won the stage.

"I feel so tired and a bit disappointed," he said. "On the one hand I am disappointed but on the other, it wasnt a bad day after all. It was a perfect situation in the breakaway, I didn't have to work, I was feeling good and I could go for a stage win.

"The last two kilometers were so steep, I needed one smaller gear. It was very hard and 150 meters from the finish, Hesjedal came really fast up behind me. It was impossible to respond and I just kept my rhythm."