'It's been a difficult year' - Instinct carries Gaudu to upset Vuelta win
After missing the Tour de France, David Gaudu has returned to form in late summer, and he scored his first WorldTour win in three years on stage 3 of the Vuelta a España.
David Gaudu sprang a surprise on stage 3 of the Vuelta a España as he outkicked favourite Mads Pedersen in an uphill sprint in Ceres. The Frenchman took the inside line on the sharp final hairpin to move ahead of red jersey Jonas Vingegaard and then power past Pedersen on the rise to the line.
There were shades of Gaudu’s upset victory against Wout van Aert at Chastreix-Sancy on the 2022 Critérium du Dauphiné, though on this occasion, the Groupama-FDJ man didn’t have to rely on the established sprinter celebrating too soon.
Gaudu was full value for his victory on the stiff finale, and the winner’s time bonus lifts him to second overall, on the same time as Vingegaard. Speaking after the finish, he explained that a pep talk from teammate Stefan Küng had convinced him he could target stage victory here.
“I was thinking in the bus this morning that this finish was more for Pedersen, but Kung told me that I have punch and I could win today,” said Gaudu. “The team did a very, very good job to keep me in the first positions all day. I’m very happy and very proud to win for me and the team. This was the best beginning we could have to the Vuelta.”
Gaudu’s victory is a boost for Groupama-FDJ after they lost Guillaume Martin to a heavy crash on stage 2. It also offers confirmation of Gaudu’s return to form after a difficult start to 2025. Gaudu missed the Tour de France in July due to a lack of condition, but he performed well at the recent Tour de l’Ain, and he placed third on the first summit finish of the Vuelta at Limone Piemonte on Sunday.
The uphill finale at Ceres looked rather gentler on paper, but the hairpins in the last kilometre made it a difficult finish to gauge. Gaudu stole a march on Vingegaard and Pedersen by cutting inside on the last bend with 75m to go, though he insisted the manoeuvre had not been pre-planned.
“Not really,” he said. “I saw Pedersen launching the sprint at 200 or 250m to go. I disconnected totally in the last corner and just pushed my limit to the finish line.”
Vingegaard took third on the stage, and the four-second bonus he received allowed him to retain the red jersey from Gaudu by dint of his higher finish on Saturday’s opening stage.
No matter, Gaudu will be buoyed by his fast start to the Vuelta, and he will have designs on further success across the three weeks. He previously won a pair of stages on the race in 2020, while last year, he bounced back from a disappointing Tour de France to place sixth overall on the Vuelta.
“It's been a very difficult year,” Gaudu said. “I haven’t won in the WorldTour in a long time. The last time was in the 2022 Dauphiné. Then I beat Van Aert in the sprint, now Pedersen. I'm feeling a lot of emotions.”
