One of the racers involved in the spills of the day was Ávila native Carlos Sastre. The most important thing for the CSC team leader was saving the day: “I was brushing up against a wire fence, which ripped my shorts and gave me some superficial scratches. But it wasn't anything serious and I was able to finish without losing time with respect to my rivals, which was the most important thing for me looking ahead to tomorrow's stage.". About the Ciudad Real time trial, this year’s Tour de France winner said: We’re thinking about the time trial tomorrow, which for many of us is the first real test of this race. Today we wanted to conserve our energy and not expend too much energy looking ahead to that stage”.

The judges of the Vuelta a España have decided to apply the regulations governing the race and therefore the racers involved in the spill 3.1 kilometres from the finish line will have the time lost counted against them. Remember that the regulations mark off the final three kilometres as a safety zone where the time lost isn’t counted if it results from a spill within that area. Nonetheless, today's spill happened outside that safety zone and the regulation is quite clear in that regard. So Carlos Sastre, Alejandro Valverde and Alberto Contador have lost 19 seconds against the group of eight riders who reached the finish line with an advantage. Among the main contenders for the overall crown, the best situated is Igor Antón who only lost seven seconds. Dutch rider Robert Gesink had worse luck, since he lost 42 seconds.

Madrid-based racer Alberto Contador deflected any pressure from Wednesday’s upcoming time trial and reminded everyone that the mountains are his favourite setting: “I’m a mountain climber, not a time trial specialist. You only have to compare the figures for victories I've had in climbs and time trials. On top of that, this doesn’t shape up as a particularly good time trial for me”. But the Astaná leader doesn’t hide the fact that his goal tomorrow is to gain time over the other favourites for the overall race crown: “I’m enough of a non-conformist to try anyway and my main goal would be to gain an advantage over my rivals in the mountains”. Questioned about the performances of Valverde and Sastre, Contador stated: “They will have a good time trial, since both of them are riding very strongly”.

The fourth stage of the Vuelta was an exact replica of the previous stage for many kilometres: breakaway by an Andalucía - Cajasur racer, this time José Antonio López, and a main pack controlling the margin in order to chase down the breakaway rider in the final kilometres. But no two stages are ever exactly alike. Two spills in the last ten kilometres shattered the discipline of the main pack completely and the resulting mess broke the big bunch into numerous pieces. Apart from the mess, Daniele Bennati and Tom Boonen again engaged in a duel for the stage win, with victory this time going to the Italian rider for Liquigas. The Tuscany native was helped by bad coordination on the part of the Quick Step riders, who handed the triumph to the Vuelta leader on a platter. The favourites were actively involved in this race, since both Alberto Contador and Alejandro Valverde were after bonus seconds looking ahead to the important time trial set for tomorrow.

Carlos Sastre, who is competing in the Spanish race with the intention of notching up a Tour-Vuelta double, has yet to reveal the name of the team with which he will be racing next season. The Avila rider is focused on the race and, for the time being, all his comments are limited to his daily performances. “On a personal level, I think everything is going fine. I’ve got nothing special to comment on today. I felt well-supported by my team-mates and we took another step forward in this year’s edition of the Vuelta”, said Sastre at the end of yesterday’s stage. Nevertheless, it seems that everyone is speculating about Sastre’s future. There has even been the case of Russian team director Oleg Tinkov publicly stating that he aims to sign the winner of this year’s Tour. “We are still in talks with Sastre. I hope that we will be able to convince him to become a member of our team”. Tinkov is to manage the new Katyusha team, which is to take over from Tinkoff Credit Systems. The team has already announced the signing of such well-known riders as Robbie McEwen, Filippo Pozzato, Gert Steegmans and Toni Colom. For the time being, Sastre is to continue with CSC, with whom he has a contract that finishes at the end of this season. He has yet to make any comment about his plans to renew for next season, however.

Today’s newspapers echo Tom Boonen’s victory in Cordoba in the third stage of the Vuelta. “El Mundo” mentions the problems that the Belgian has had in the last few months and which cost him his participation both the Tour and the Olympic Games. The headlines read: “Tom Boonen triumphs in Cordoba”. “El País” reinforces this point and states that the Vuelta is the first big race this year in which the Quick Step cyclist can compete for first place. The headlines read, with reference to Boonen: “The big man is back”. However, the harshest and most explicit headline is that of ABC, which does not hesitate in referring to the Belgian’s past: “Boonen scores again”.

The Vuelta leaves Andalusia behind on the fourth day. The main bunch are heading towards Puertollano in a stage that begins in Cordoba and covers 170 kilometres. However, before reaching Castilla-La Mancha, the riders will have to overcome two third category climbs, perfect terrain for attacks and for the brave to challenge the discipline of the main group. It will not be easy, since the finish is suited only to those cyclists who are on top form: Belgian Tom Boonen and Italian Daniele Bennati. We may see the second installment of the duel between the Tuscan and Flemmish riders today, with Boonen currently ahead by one victory. Freire and Koldo Fernández will fight for the second Spanish victory in this Vuelta, in a stage in which the favourites will be saving energies for Wednesday's time-trial.