Simone Ponzi (Astana) won the opening stage in the Vuelta a Burgos after a blistering finale in which attacks and counter-attacks came in rapid succession.

Ponzi’s team-mate, Vincenzo Nibali, has made a slow and unspectacular comeback since he won the Giro d’Italia back in May, but today he ignited a couple of moves inside the action-packed closing 10 kilometres, which included two climbs up a short, but steep finishing hill above Burgos.

In fact, Nibali selflessly made a move on the final ascent to pave the way for his teammate to launch a counter-attack and take the win.

Ponzi timed his sprint perfectly, with Daniele Ratto (Cannondale) crossing the line in visible dissatisfaction with his runner-up spot. Sergei Chernetski (Katusha) crossed the line in third place.

The terse finale splintered the front group, with Nibali crossing the line eight seconds adrift. Pre-race favorite Nairo Quintana (Movistar) crossed the line 12 seconds back while Ivan Basso (Cannondale), preparing for a run at the Vuelta a España, delivered a disappointing performance as he conceded 42 seconds.

Vuelta a Burgos, stage 1 result:
1 Simone Ponzi (Ita) Astana Pro Team 3:16:34  

2 Daniele Ratto (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling    

3 Sergei Chernetckii (Rus) Katusha    

4 Anthony Roux (Fra) FDJ.fr    

5 Dario Cataldo (Ita) Sky Procycling 00:03”  

6 Jens Keukeleire (Bel) Orica-GreenEdge    

7 Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra) FDJ.fr 00:05”  

8 Mauro Finetto (Ita) Vini Fantini-Selle Italia    

9 Mikael Cherel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale    

10 Rinaldo Nocentini (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale 00:08”  

11 Giovanni Visconti (Ita) Movistar Team    

12 Samuel Sanchez Gonzalez (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi    

13 Giampaolo Caruso (Ita) Katusha    

14 Jeffry Johan Romero Corredor (Col) Colombia    

15 Ivan Velasco Murillo (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA    

16 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team    

17 Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits    

18 Carlos Barbero Cuesta (Spa) Euskadi 00:12”  

19 Romain Hardy (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits    

20 Mikel Landa Meana (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi