The Italian set an early marker of 13:00 on the shortened 12.2km course, and no one managed to dislodge him despite a tense two-hour wait in the leader’s chair.
“I think I suffered more in the last three hours in the hot seat than on the bike,” Ganna admitted after his third career Vuelta stage win – and his second in Valladolid.
A short, sharp race against time
The stage had originally been designed as a 27.2km test but was cut back to less than half that length to ensure “greater protection” for the riders amid security concerns over ongoing pro-Palestine protests.
While Ganna was always tipped as a favourite, the drama came in the final wave of riders. Vine came within a second of victory, while João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) slotted into third at +7s, and Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) rode one of his best ever time trials to defend his podium place in the general classification.
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“[In] the first part I didn’t find the correct rhythm and then in the final I tried to push without thinking of the numbers or anything,” Ganna explained. “I’m really happy for today. This last week has started really well for us and it’s not over yet. I’ve suffered a lot with the elevation in the first two weeks of this Vuelta and with illness, but every day I’ve got better and better.”
Hot seat pressure and costly mistakes
Sitting in the leader’s chair for hours tested Ganna’s nerves, but others faltered out on course. Daan Hoole (Lidl-Trek), expected to challenge, lost precious seconds after misjudging a roundabout — a mistake later repeated by German time trial champion Max Schachmann (Soudal Quick-Step).
“In a short time trial like this you can’t make any mistakes,” Hoole said afterwards, a lesson reinforced by his 10th place finish.
Meanwhile, Pidcock not only defended his GC standing but also claimed his best TT performance yet. “I think that was my best ever time trial,” he said at the line, relief evident in his voice. The Brit finished just ahead of Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), tightening their duel for third overall.
GC battle tightens
Behind overall leader Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), who finished ninth at +18s, Almeida has now closed to within 40 seconds of red, setting up a tense showdown in the final days. Other shifts included Matthew Riccitello (Israel Premier-Tech) moving ahead of Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) in the top 10.
With just a handful of stages left, every second is becoming decisive — and if stage 18 proved anything, it’s that at this year’s Vuelta, no lead feels safe.
Stage 18 – Valladolid (12.2 km ITT)
- Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) – 13:00
- Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) – +0:00.9
- João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) – +0:07
- Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) – +0:09
- Ivo Oliveira (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) – +0:10
- Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) – +0:11
- Kelland O’Brien (Jayco-AlUla) – +0:14
- Alec Segaert (Lotto) – +0:15
- Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +0:18
- Daan Hoole (Lidl-Trek) – +0:18
General classification after Stage 18
- Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) – 65:07:13
- João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) – +0:40
- Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) – +2:39
- Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) – +3:18
- Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) – +4:19
- Matthew Riccitello (Israel-Premier Tech) – +5:17
- Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) – +5:20
- Sepp Kuss (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +7:26
- Torstein Træen (Bahrain Victorious) – +7:42
- Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) – +10:19
