Vuelta Stage 18: Daniele Bennati uses experience to outfox Ben Swift on the line

Daniele Bennati of RadioShack-Nissan used all his experience today to outfox Team Sky's Ben Swift to win Stage 18 of the Vuelta in Valladolid this afternoon. Team Sky had led the peloton in the closing few kilometres as they looked to set up the Yorkshireman, and when Ian Stannard peeled off with around 250 metres left to ride, Swift got onto the wheel of AG2R-La Mondiale's Lloyd Mondory and looked poised to take the win. Alberto Contador of Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank continues to lead the race overall by nearly two minutes.

Bennati, aged 31, seven years older than Swift, knew exactly which wheel he wated to grab, however, nipping into the Team Sky riders' slipstream and then timimg his move round the 24-year-old to perfection to win the stage by a matter of inches.

John Degenkolb of Argos-Shimano, until now the sprinter to beat in this year's Vuelta, desperately needed a fifth stage victory to try and catch up the three Spaniards ahead of him in the points classification - Contador, Alejandro Valverde of Movistar, and Katusha's Joaquin Rodriguez, the current leader of the points competition.

Degenkolb found himself out of position at the crucial point in the finale, however, and finished fifth, well behind the pair fighting it out for the win.He remains fourth in the points classification, 46 points behind Rodriguez.

Earlier in the 204.5km, mainly flat, stage from Aguilar de Campoo, a crash some 32km out brought down four riders including Bennati's team mate Linus Gerdemann who came down heavily and was subsequently reported to have abandoned the race.

A five man breakaway, comprising uis Angel Mate of Cofidis, Martijn Keizer from Vacansoleil-DCM, the Katusha rider Gatis Smukulis, Andalucia's Gustavo Cesar and Brent Bookwalter of BMC Racing, had been swept up with 18km left to ride with the peloton going flat out, strung way back down the road as it crossed the plain and headed towards Valladolid.

The stage winner the last time the Vuelta visited the city was the Belgian sprinter Wouter Weylandt, Bennati's Leopard Trek teammate, killed in a crash during the 2011 Giro d'Italia. Today the Italian dedicated his stage win to his late colleague. 

Vuelta Stage 18 Result  

1  BENNATI, Daniele    RNT    4h 17' 17''
2  SWIFT, Ben          SKY    Same time
3  DAVIS, Allan        OGE        "
4  MONDORY, Lloyd      ALM        "
5  DEGENKOLB, John     ARG        "
6  VIGANO, Davide      LAM        "
7  BRESCHEL, Matti     RAB        "
8  DE KORT, Koen       ARG        "
9  DOCKER, Mitchell    OGE        "
10 RAST, Grégory       RNT           + 6''
11 BAZAYEV, Assan      AST           + 6''
12 VIVIANI, Elia       LIQ           + 6''
13 CLARKE, Simon       OGE           + 6''
14 DUQUE, Leonardo     COF           + 6''
15 PÉREZ, Rubén        EUS           + 6''
16 STANNARD, Ian       SKY           + 6''
17 KREDER, Michel      GRS           + 8''
18 TERPSTRA, Niki      OPQ           + 8''
19 MAASKANT, Martijn   GRS          + 10''
20 MORENO, Daniel      KAT          + 10''

Last man home on Stage 18  

178 ROSENDO, Jesús     ACG      + 25' 25''
   
General Classification after Stage 18  

1  CONTADOR, Alberto   STB    72h 25' 21''
2  VALVERDE, Alejandro MOV       + 1' 52''
3  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin  KAT       + 2' 28''
4  FROOME, Christopher SKY       + 9' 40''
5  MORENO, Daniel      KAT      + 11' 36''
6  GESINK, Robert      RAB      + 12' 02''
7  TEN DAM, Laurens    RAB      + 12' 55''
8  TALANSKY, Andrew    GRS      + 13' 06''
9  ANTON, Igor         EUS      + 13' 49''
10 INTXAUSTI, Beñat    MOV      + 14' 10''

Points Classification after Stage 18  
 
1  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin  KAT           170
2  VALVERDE, Alejandro MOV           159
3  CONTADOR, Alberto   STB           152
4  DEGENKOLB, John     ARG           124
5  FROOME, Christopher SKY            93

Mountains Classification after Stage 18  

1  CLARKE, Simon       OGE           38
2  RODRIGUEZ, Joaquin  KAT           36
3  DE GENDT, Thomas    VCD           33
4  VALVERDE, Alejandro MOV           31
5  CONTADOR, Alberto   STB           28