Jakobsen Pips Bennett In Spain

Fabio Jakobsen won stage four at the Vuelta a Espana, just pipping Ireland’s Sam Bennett in the sprint finish. Bennett was looking to pick up back-to-back wins at the Vuelta after coming out on top in stage three, but on this occasion, he lost out by the narrowest of margins.

Bennett made an error at a late roundabout when he favoured the right-hand side, instead of the left, the route taken by the majority of his rivals. It proved to be costly as Netherlands national champion Jakobsen won his first Grand Tour stage by millimetres.

“This one hurts a lot,” Bennett said after the race. “I just couldn’t get the right position, I went the wrong way at the roundabout, but big congrats to Fabio Jakobsen on his first stage victory.” Meanwhile, Nicolas Roche retained his overall lead of two seconds over Nairo Quintana in the general classification and will hold the red jersey heading into stage five. Today the riders face a hilly stage with a 170.7km route from L’Eliana to Alto de Javalambre.