France's Julian Alaphilippe signalled his return to top form after knee surgery when he took his maiden grand Tour win in the eighth stage of the Vuelta a Espana.
Briton Chris Froome, looking to become the first rider to achieve a Tour de France-Vuelta double since 1978, attacked on the final climb to extend his overall lead as only Alberto Contador could follow him.
Quick Step Floors rider Alaphilippe, who missed the Tour because of a knee injury, was part of the day's breakaway and followed Pole Rafal Majka's attacks on the final climb, a brutal ascent featuring gradients of more than 20 per cent.
He was the quickest in the final sprint after 199.5 km, beating Slovenia's Jan Polanc (UAE Team Emirates) and Bora-Argon's Majka by two seconds.
"I did not expect to win the stage today. It was complicated as I did not feel that great. I was more thinking about tomorrow," Alaphilippe said.
In the group of overall contenders, Froome first appeared to struggle but only Contador could take his wheel when the Team Sky rider accelerated 4km from the finish.
The duo gained 17 seconds on their closest rivals.
Froome now leads Colombian Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) by 28 seconds and Ireland's Nicolas Roche (BMC Racing) by 41.
Contador (Trek-Segafredo), in his final race before heading into retirement, is 17th, more than three minutes off the pace. The Spaniard had lost considerable ground in the first week but has gradually climbed up the rankings since then.
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