No problems for Kruijswijk and Bennett in crazy Vuelta stage
Steven Kruijswijk and George Bennett maintained themselves in the top of the overall standings in the Vuelta a España's 11th stage today. In the crazy day with a very high average, both Team LottoNL-Jumbo leaders finished in the group of favourites, two minutes from stage winner Alessandro De Marchi.
In the general classification, Kruijswijk remains ninth at 43 seconds, Bennett 10th at 47 seconds from overall leader Simon Yates.
In the longest stage of the Vuelta, the race went full gas from the start and it didn't stop for a single moment. Kruijswijk and Bennett were assisted in the final by Sepp Kuss and Floris De Tier, who kept their leaders perfectly in the front.
Mainly, Kruijswijk felt relief after the stage. "We have been racing full gas from the start and it never stopped because of a large leading group that had been established including Pinot," he said.
"It was important to stay in attentive all day. Especially in the final, when it started to rain. It was pretty dangerous on the narrow roads, but we both finished the stage without time loss and I am happy with that. "
Bennett considered it one of the toughest stages he has done. "Today was tough, very tough. I think it was one of the toughest stages I have ever done," Bennett said.
"It was full gas from the start and it never stopped. Everyone was racing at his limits so there was no possibility to try and take some time back. But we got through the day very well, so that's fine."