"This arrival was one of my targets, but I missed it despite of a good performance and great team support. I was willing to try to get to an important result, so we decided to give our contribution to the chase. In the final kilometre, I tried to make my move, but it was not incisive", said Ulissi shortly after the stage.

In the final climb, Lampre-Merida’s young gun tried to escape to the main protagonist of the Spanish race, but he was unable get clear. Only Roche could obtain a little advantage that allowed him to reach the finish line alone, winning the stage with two seconds to Moreno and six seconds to Pozzovivo.

Ulissi crossed the finish line with a gap of 12 seconds and crossed the line as number 6th, just behind Valverde and preceding Rodriguez and Basso, as the first Italian. Scarponi finished 29th with a time loss of 27 seconds.  In the overall standing, Ulissi is 22nd with 54 seconds to the new leader Nibali.