As Frantisek Rabon (HTC-Columbia) finished in the pack on the fifth and final day of the Vuelta a Murcia to hold onto the yellow jersey, Theo Bos (CerveloTestTeam) took a stage win, outkicking Graeme Brown (Rabobank) for the win; the third oh-so-close second place for Brown in the 5-day tour.
With a 38-second GC lead following yesterday’s decisive time trial, Rabon needed only to survive the stage, biding his time in the pack as the peloton came to the line all together and the sprinters raced for the final stage win.
The stage was a relatively easy 121 km route into Murcia, with only one category two climb that failed to shake up the peloton. There was just one break on the day, but it was closely monitored and controlled by the field and was brought back a few kilometers from the finish.
American Lance Armstrong (RadioShack) finished seventh overall in his European racing debut this season. Denis Menchov (Rabobank) finished second overall 38 seconds back, and Team Sky’s Bradley Wiggins held on for third, 53 seconds behind Rabon.
