Daniel Navarro (Cofidis) has won Stage 13 of Vuelta a Espana 2014. Navarro surged into the lead with two km left and held off the peloton to win the hilly, 199.7-km ride from Belorado to Obregon, Parque de Cabarceno in 4:21:04. Daniel Moreno (Katusha) and Wilco Kelderman (Belkin) finished second and third, respectively, at 0:02. Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo Bank) remains the red jersey on the eve of three pivotal mountain stages.

The break of the day formed at 15 km, when Alexey Lutsenko (Astana), Jay Thomson (MTN-Qhubeka), Peter Sagan (Cannondale), Paolo Longo Borghini (Cannondale), Jasper Stuyven (Trek), Damiano Cunego (Lampre-Merida), Stef Clement (Belkin), Luis Leon Sanchez (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Danilo Wyss (BMC), Damien Gaudin (Ag2r-La Mondiale), and Vegard Breen (Lotto-Belisol) escaped. Movistar and Europcar went to the front, and the peloton kept the bunch on a short leash, with the lead never reaching three minutes.

Sanchez led the escapees over the summit of the Category 3 Estacas de Trueba with a 2:45 lead. On the day’s last categorized ascent, the Category 2 Alto del Caracol, the escapees led the field by two minutes, but Orica-GreenEdge led the peloton and accelerated. Cunego, Wyss, Lutsenko, Sanchez, and Gaudin dropped their companions and went for the win.

For a time, the pursuit lost momentum, but FDJ.fr and Tinkoff-Saxo Bank took over at the front. With 15 km left, 0:38 separated the bunch from the break. Lutsenko set out on his own. Sky took command and reeled in the Astana man with seven km to go.

On the approach to the uncategorized climb to the finish, Katusha, Orica-GreenEdge, and Cannondale battled for position. Tinkoff-Saxo Bank led the field with five km left.

With 2.1 km remaining, Gianluca Brambilla (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) attacked. Navarro countered and took the lead. Dan Martin (Garmin-Sharp-POC) attempted to join Navarro, but the other contenders reeled him in. Froome had a dig but was caught as well. Navarro stayed clear for the win.

In the overall, Contador leads Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) by 0:20 and Rigoberto Uran (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) by 1:08. Stage 14 will be a standing shaker. The 200.8-km ride from Santander to La Camperona, Valle de Sabero will feature a Category 2 ascent and two Category 1 climbs, including the ascent to the finish. A breakaway could take the stage. Who will have the red jersey at the end of the day? Contador? Valverde? Check in at www.roadcycling.com and find out!

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