Mike Woods: ‘I wasn’t meant to be in the breakaway, but the race got so crazy’ 

Mike Woods said he hadn’t planned to make it into the breakaway before his victory on stage seven of the Vuelta a España.

The Canadian had intended to stay with EF Pro Cycling’s general classification leader Hugh Carthy, but as the race exploded on the road to  Villanueva de Valdegovia Woods had to jump into the escape.

After joining the huge breakaway, Woods then outclassed the likes of Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Omar Fraile (Astana) to take the stage.

Speaking after the finish, Woods said: “I had penciled in this stage a bit, but initially I wasn’t meant to get in the breakaway I was meant to be with Hugh, however the race just got so crazy and the group got so big I had to go across to make sure we had numbers in it and it paid off great for me.”

Woods and his team-mate Magnus Cort both made it into the large 40-rider front group, with Woods attacking on the second ascent of the Puerto de Orduña, before he was joined by three other breakaway riders.

With 1km left to race, Woods kicked again and broke clear of his rivals to take the stage with a four-second advantage.

The 34-year-old added: “That was a special day, it’s always amazing racing in the Basque Country. 

“I got away with those four other guys and they were riding super strong. I felt bad that I couldn’t pull through, but with Valverde, I just couldn’t pull through because we had Hugh Carthy in the peloton and we didn’t want to give him any more time in the classification. 

“So, I was able to sit in a bit and then I had a bit of luck, I had the legs and I just took the win.” 

“That was a special day, it’s always amazing racing in the Basque Country. I got away with those four other guys and they were riding super strong. 

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“I felt bad that I couldn’t pull through, but with Valverde, I just couldn’t pull through because we had Hugh Carthy in the peloton and we didn’t want to give him any more time in the classification. 

“So, I was able to sit in a bit and then I had a bit of luck, I had the legs and I just took the win.”