Team Sky's Vasil Kiryienka won the Vuelta a España Stage Eighteen this afternoon in Peña Cabarga.
A day of five climbs on a 186.5km stage from Burgos to Peña Cabarga started with Egoi Martinez (Euskaltel), Simon Clarke (Orica GreenEDGE), Caleb Fairly (Garmin-Sharp), Angel Vicioso (Katusha), Adam Hansen (Lotto), Amets Txurruka (Caja Rural), Mikael Cherel (AG2R), Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (Argos Shimano), Vasil Kiryienka (Team Sky), Tiziano Dall’Aantonia (Cannondale), Martin Kohler (BMC), Ben Gastauer (AG2R), Chris Anker Sorensen (Saxo Bank), Grega Bole (Vacansoleil) and Matteo Bono (Lampre Merida) on the attack.
The lead went out to nine minutes as they started on the first climb - Alto de Bocos. Txurruka wasfirst over the summit top of the climb, with Cherel in second and Sorensen in third.
With 91kms to go, there was the first intermediate sprint of the day and Sorensen won that as the gap back to the peloton including race leader Vincenzo Nibali went out to ten minutes.
Txurruka was first over the second climb of the day - the Alto Estacas de Trueba but as the escapers started on the Braguía, which Txurruka won ahead of Cherel and Hansen, Katusha and Movistar got on the front and reduced the escapers back to 6.12.
There were forty seven kilometres to go when Kiryienka of Team Sky went away on a solo raid in a race that is expected to start in the region of Cadiz in 2014, chased by Hansen and Orica Green Edge's Simon Clarke.
Climb four, whch was a second category, went to Kiryienka ahead of Egoi Martinez and Chris Anker Sorensen and some 6.14 ahead of the peloton.
Martinez , Sorensen and Vicioso tried to chase down Kiryienka, who had failed to make a time cut and was excluded from the Tour De France back in July,
WIth 15.9kms to go, Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (Argos Shimano), BMC's Martin Kohler and Txurruka joined the trio of chasers,
There were a number of ten per cent ramps on the final Peña Cabarga.climb which saw Clarke and Sorensen joining the six chasers.
Vasil Kiryienka, stayed out in front with a 1.48 lead with 5.3kms remaining.
Sorensen went after him and the pace amongst the group of favourites which included Nibali, Horner and Roche went up but this was the day for the Team Sky rider and Vasil Kiryienka won in a time of 4.46.47. ahead of Sorensen, some 28 seconds down and Adam Hansen in third 1'18 back.
Behind him, there was contact between Valverde and Nibali, who were in a group with Horner who kicked and went away. Nibali was struggling as Horner finished sixth 1.53 down but the Astana rider came in at 2.18 down, which was enough to keep him in the leader's jersey by three seconds.
Nicholas Roche came in eleventh and stays fifth in the General Classification.
Stage winner Vasil Kiryienka (Team Sky) said to La Vuelta.com: “I knew that my lead at the bottom of the final climb allowed me to win but I had to keep a steady pace, without thinking too much of what was happening behind. The fans gave me a hard time. This is my third Vuelta. I had won stages at the Giro and the Tour but I only came second here [in stage 19 to Segovia in 2008]. I badly wanted to win. That’s done. All my wins have come the same way from long breakaways. They’re due to an honest work and the trust of my team. My kisses on the finishing line were for my wife and kids but I dedicate this stage to Daniele Tortoli. He was my directeur sportif in the amateur ranks, he helped me turn pro and he died in July. I also had a bad time at Tour de France [out of time cut in the Pyrenees] but I thank my team for having kept my morale high.”