Henok holds 46th at La Vuelta ahead of La Pandera test

Henok Mulubrhan retained 46th place overall at the Vuelta a España on Friday after finishing Stage 13 in Loja, with another mountain summit finish awaiting the Eritrean on Saturday.

Mulubrhan completed the 192.8 kilometres from Almuñécar in 53rd place, clocking 4:37:29. He finished 3 minutes and 29 seconds behind stage winner Wout van Aert and 29 seconds behind the group containing race leader Enric Mas.

His overall position was unchanged from Thursday’s climb to Calar Alto, where he joined the breakaway and moved into the top 50. His cumulative time now stands at 46:33:20, leaving him 1:24:29 behind Mas. He also remains 61st in the points classification with 11 points.

XDS Astana featured in the attacking race through Cristian Rodríguez, who rode in the leading moves before finishing 17th, 45 seconds behind Van Aert. The Belgian settled the stage in a two-rider sprint against Valentin Paret-Peintre, with teammate Matthew Brennan taking third.

Saturday’s 154.5-kilometre Stage 14 runs from Jaén to Sierra de La Pandera. Two category-two climbs precede the final ascent, which rises for 11.9 kilometres at an average gradient of 7.2%. For Mulubrhan, the steep finish brings a sustained climbing test rather than the sprint opportunities that have delivered his best placings in this race.