Rigoberto Uran came agonizingly close to a win o today's stage of the Vuelta a Espana but was narrowly edged out by Warren Barguil (Argos-Shimano). The Colombian admits his defeat and was highly impressed by the quality of the 21-year old youngster.

Rigoberto Uran has had a confusing Vuelta a Espana. Having entered the race as luxury domestique for Sergio Henao, he suddenly found himself as the team's GC rider when his compatriot slipped back in the overall standings. His own dreams came to nothing when he suffered in the cold on Saturday and lost more than 20 minutes to his main rivals.

With Sky and Uran out of GC contention, both have changed their focus, and a stage win is now the unusual target for the team. Having gained confidence by a good showing on yesterday's stage, Uran went on the attack today and got close to the elusive victory.

With 1km to go, he caught lone leader Warren Barguil who appeared to be fading. Uran had a similar impression and tried to drop the youngster with an immediate acceleration.

However, the 21-year old raced with great maturity and had saved something for the finale. He responded to Uran's acceleration and stayed calmly on the wheel of his rival, not even panicking when Bartosz Huzarski (NetApp) and Dominik Nerz (BMC) joined them. Finally, he responded well to Uran's sprint and beat the Sky rider in a photo finish.

Uran is usually very difficult to beat in this kind of sprint and so was left impressed by the youngster. However, the Colombian vows to continue his fight in the Asturian mountains.

“I had to try and win the stage and I’ll try again after tomorrow’s rest day," he said. "Barguil is very strong. I’m impressed by him. He’s not only strong, he’s very smart as well. He has done a very good sprint.”

The riders will enjoy a rest day tomorrow before getting back in action with a flat stage on Wednesday. Starting at 15.00 CEST you can follow that stage on CyclingQuotes.com/live.