Fun on the dirt roads, Euskaltel and Glassdrive going crazy with men in the break AND men attacking Stüssi in the peloton. And Glassdrive attacking their own breaks, beautiful. Even though it's Figueiredo attacking to try to join the fugitives, which isn't bad at all, just seeing the same team - especially one in an absolute eyesore of a jersey - drive the breakaway and the chase is like, peak August.
Afonso Eulalio needs a PT or WT contract asap before he gets destroyed by Portuguese cycling. Luckily for him he punctures and is spared working the rest of the day, he's been slaving on the front again.
Txomin Juaristi trying to get across to the breakaway without luck. Stüssi having to take up the business at the head of the chase pack now.
Not a large group, 15-20 or so in the camisola amarela group I think. Only around 20" for the leaders though. Nych again attacking the group bringing back his own teammate in the break. Stüssi isn't really interested in the couple up the road though - Whelan is just under 5 minutes down and Soto is about 45 minutes down. They're working well together for the time being.
Kelly-Simoldes taking over the work on the front, they have three in the group, Hélder Gonçalves, Luís Gomes and Adrián Bustamante, and nothing to show for the race yet. All are between 14th and 22nd on GC so not super relevant here, so I don't think that's a motivation, I thought they might have a rider under threat of being knocked out the top 10 by Whelan or something but doesn't seem to be the case so I assume it's stagehunting. They've pulled the gap down to only a few seconds now the road has widened out and it seems like the break will be swallowed up. It's gradual downhill almost all the way to the line now so they are still pedalling away but trying to be as aero as possible. Soto seems to be persisting but with 6 seconds and 9km it seems pretty doomed. They're hanging out there and taking advantage of some indecisiveness behind to stay there, but you have to think there will be late stage attacks, at least for those not needing to conserve energy for Senhora da Graça tomorrow.
Soto is definitely putting more effort in to stay away than Whelan now, Whelan waving into the wheel when Soto flicks his elbow, he then comes through but didn't seem like he wanted to there.
Descent over and they're in the town itself now, all together. Slight dig in town and one of the Kelly riders nips off the front and is chased by Yesid Pira. Eulalio is back and he's back on the front. King. Soto and Whelan now struggling to hang on the back of the group as the moves start.
Nych attacks again. Stüssi marks it and then a Euskie goes - Iturria - and there's hesitation in the reaction.
A Kelly rider along with Yesid Pira chase him and cross the gap. Whelan looks to have recovered and meets them but as soon as he gets there Pira attacks and gains a gap. These four should battle out the final kilometre. Pira goes again with 750m to go but Bustamante is trying to get to him - but the road is blocked by Whelan and Pira gets a gap! But he explodes as soon as they hit the cobbles and is swallowed up and spat out by the rest of the escapees as well as most of the remains of the péloton that is catching up fast!
Bustamante escapes and blasts away to win, ahead of Iturria... Mate sprints from the bunch behind and almost catches but has to settle for 3rd almost outsprinting his teammate! Interestingly if Mate had caught Iturria he would move up to 2nd on GC on countback I believe? As it is he's 2" behind Nych in 3rd.
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