Roche drops out of contention at Vuelta after Froome crash

Meanwhile the Saxo-Tinkoff owner has threatened to withdraw his team from the rest of the race…

The Astana team were the big winners on Stage 11 of the Vuelta a Espana as the challenge from Nicolas Roche and the rest of Team Sky crumbled dramatically.

The toughest stage to ever feature in the Vuelta included six categorised climbs during the 138-kilometre route from Andorra la Vella to Cortals d’Encamp but ultimately ended in an Astana 1-2.