Henok reaches Vuelta top 40 after La Pandera climb

Henok Mulubrhan moved into the top 40 of the Vuelta a España on Saturday after completing the demanding summit finish at Sierra de La Pandera.

The Eritrean finished Stage 14 in 45th place, covering the 154.5 kilometres from Jaén in 4:25:45. He crossed the line 10 minutes and 36 seconds behind winner Marco Brenner after a day featuring 4,338 metres of climbing and a final 11.9-kilometre ascent averaging 7.2%.

Mulubrhan rose six positions in the general classification to 40th, with a cumulative time of 50:59:05. He is now 1:30:53 behind race leader Enric Mas. His points total remains unchanged at 11, placing him 62nd in that classification.

XDS Astana also secured a podium finish through Cristian Rodríguez, who took third on the stage and advanced to eighth overall. Brenner won a two-rider sprint against mountains leader Santiago Buitrago after a 44-man breakaway shaped the race.

Sunday’s Stage 15 from Palma del Río to Córdoba has been shortened to 110.2 kilometres under the race’s extreme-temperature protocol. The revised medium-mountain route offers a markedly different test before Monday’s second rest day, with a faster finish potentially bringing Mulubrhan’s versatility back into play.