Daniel Martin almost lost the results two weeks of hard work when he crashed at a very bad time in today's stage of the Vuelta a Espana. However, excellent work by teammate Ryder Hesjedal allowed him to rejoin the front and gain time on most of his rivals.

Daniel Martin found himself in a very uncomfortable situation when an untimely crash had caused him to lose 1.30 to the peloton at a time when Movistar were riding full gas in today's stage of the Vuelta a Espana. However, strong teamwork allowed the Irishman to save the race and he was full of praise of Ryder Hesjedal who had been the key rider that allowed him to move up in the overall standings.

“I fell in a ravine," he said. "I had to scramble out on my own with the help of spectators. Ryder Hesjedal saved me. He’s been brilliant to get me back into racing, especially after winning yesterday’s stage. Fortunately he did so because I had fantastic legs today. It would have been a pity to lose everything on that crash.”