Urko Berrade (team Equipo Kern Pharma) won the 18th stage of the Vuelta a Espana (Tour of Spain) cycle race on Thursday to claim his modest, but team battle, third win in the race.

Berrade formed part of the day's breakaway on the stage between Vitoria- Gasteiz and Maetsu Parque Natural de Izki in the Basque region of northern Spain in a stage over rolling terrain, marked by several steep slopes.

The second ascent of the day, the cat-1 Puerto Herrera did its job in reducing the number of riders in the breakaway, but the Kern Pharma team (which is based in the neighboring region of Navarre) had Pau Miquel (who finished third on the day) and Pablo Castrillo to support Berrade.

Steven Kruijswijk (Visma-Lease a Bike) tried to ride away on a rise in the road with five and a half kilometers left on the stage, but Berrade was able to follow him and overtake him before descent to the finish line.

"I don't believe it, there were some great rivals in the break, but my companions also did a great job in covering my back," he said after the stage.

The Puerto Herrera also played a role in the race for the overall classification, with Richard Carapaz and his Education First-Easy Post team attacking several times on the steep slopes.

Friday sees a 173.5-kilometer stage which starts in Logrono in the Rioja wine district, and ends at the top of the first category Alto de Moncalvillo climb, which is likely to see some movement among the overall race leaders. 

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