With no sprinter on the roster, BMC were fully focused on Samuel Sanchez in today's stage of the Vuelta a Espana. In the finale, however, Manuel Quinziato saw an opportunity to launch an attack.

The BMC Racing Team spent Thursday's stage of the Vuelta a España looking after Samuel Sánchez and his sixth place on the general classification as the peloton enjoyed a more relaxed day.Sánchez was not among the riders who crashed on the final turn of the 166.4-kilometer race that comprised eight laps of a flat, 20.8-km circuit.

As the crash occurred in the final three kilometers, all riders were awarded the same time as stage winner John Degenkolb (Team Giant-Shimano) and there were no changes in the overall standings. Sánchez remains 1:52 behind race leader Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) with nine stages to go.

"It was all flat, nothing special," BMC Racing Team Sport Director Valerio Piva said. "It was more or less a rest day for everybody."

Manuel Quinziato, one of the riders charged with protecting Sánchez, said he saw an opportunity to attack with 2.5 km to go.

"There were a lot of corners and I was feeling really good," he said. "Unfortunately, Tinkoff-Saxo kept a strong pace. I was thinking maybe they were not so interested in going after me. It was worth a try. If you don't try, you don't win."