It is a second stage success for the Carrick-on-Suir sprinter, who also won yesterday, and gives his team two stage victories in the first week of the final Grand Tour of the season.

Stage 3, which was the final stage in the Netherlands, was again a showdown between the fast men. They duly contested the sprint on a circuit around Breda on the longest stage of this year’s Vuelta, at 193.5 km in length.

Sam Bennett started the stage in the green points jersey and hoped to be able to defend it and take another stage win.

With his Bora-Hansgrohe team supporting him all day, in the end, Danny van Poppel was the last man to set his teammate up perfectly on the left hand side of the road, ahead of the bunch sprint.

The Irish fast man was able to hold his own in a hectic tussle at the front and ultimately take the win.

The team from Raubling thereby took its second stage victory in a row and extended its lead in the points classification.

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Bennett, winner of the green jersey in this year’s Tour de France, beat Belgium’s Jasper Philipsen and Italy’s Jakub Marecszo in a sprint finish to narrowly take the stage win at the end of the 191.7 kilometres.

Today’s success is Bennett’s third Vuelta stage win and his sixth in a Grand Tour.

UAE Team Emirates and Bora-Hansgrohe went to the front of the peloton late on, before Philipsen moved clear 200 metres from the finish.

However, Deceuninck – Quick-Step’s Bennett went on the Belgian’s wheel and won by a bike length to secure his first win at this year’s La Vuelta.

“It was so fast on the run-in, I was a bit nervous,” said the winning Deceuninck-Quick-Step rider.

“I had the power but he (Philipsen) was so explosive out of the corner and I didn’t know if I would catch him” the 30-year-old explained.

“I found the speed I needed, and in the end, I managed to overtake him and take my first win since Champs-Élysées, which feels amazing”, a delighted Bennett said after picking up Deceuninck – Quick-Step’s 39th victory of the year.

Defending champion Primoz Roglic remains in the overall lead, five seconds ahead of Ireland’s Dan Martin with Richard Carapaz in third.

Stage four result
1. Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-Quick-Step)
2. Jasper Philipsen (UAE Team Emirates)
3. Jakub Mareczko (ICCC)

General classification after stage four
1. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 16hrs 30mins 53secs
2. Daniel Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation) +5secs
3. Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers) +13secs

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Martin, who already had two third-place finishes this week, was taking his first La Veulta stage win since 2011.

Thursday’s 166km stage from Lodosa to Vinuesa featured two categorised climbs, which ultimately decided the outcome of the stage.

The Irishman accelerated inside the last 200m of the stage, out-sprinting Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) and Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers). The summit finish win was Martin’s first stage win since the 2018 Tour de France.

Dan Martin claims his second stage win on the roads of La Vuelta, 9 years after his victory in Sierra de Béjar-La Covatilla.

“I’ve come so close to winning this year. I just really wanted to win a stage for this team because they’ve been so good to me,” the emotional Irishman said.

“Obviously with the (back) injury at the Tour (de France), I couldn’t win a stage. I was really determined to win today. The team were amazing, and every single one of them played their part in the victory.

“This win is partly for them and then partly for my wife, because this is the first time I’ve won a race since my kids were born and it’s really special.”

Stage three result

1. Daniel Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation)
2. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma)
3. Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers)

General classification after stage three
1. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 12hrs 37mins 24secs
2. Daniel Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation) +5secs
3. Richard Carapaz (Ineos Grenadiers +13secs

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