Vuelta a Espana 2015: Stage 9 Results, Latest Standings and Highlights

Tom Dumoulin won Stage 9 of the 2015 Vuelta a Espana on Sunday and grabbed the top spot in the standings in the process, proving himself as the best power-climber during the final ascent of the Cumbre del Sol.  

The big Dutchman may struggle keeping up with the lightweight climbers in the high mountains, but a steep climb like Sunday's allows him to use all that power in his lower back to devastating effect. In a thrilling finale, he managed to stay ahead of Tour de France winner Chris Froome and specialist Joaquim Rodriguez.

Here are the results from the stage and the updated standings:

The big news entering Sunday's stage was Peter Sagan's decision to abandon the race following his crash on Saturday and the subsequent controversy. The fan favourite made contact with a motorbike in the final kilometers and was visibly upset, even kicking out at several other vehicles of the organisation, per Cycling News.

As shared by cycling writer Ned Boulting, the UCI responded to the incident by fining the Slovak, which likely contributed to his decision to quit the race:

The Cumbre del Sol took centre stage in Sunday's stage, with the peloton crossing the climb twice. The pack was happy to give a small group of riders a healthy lead, focusing more on the battle for the general classification and knowing full well the stronger climbers would be able to chase the leaders down, regardless.

Once again, a crash involving plenty of star riders had everyone watching holding their breath, with the likes of Fabio Aru and Alejandro Valverde hitting the asphalt. Luckily, no one appeared to suffer any major damage, and the peloton was happy to wait for the riders to return.

At the front, the leaders scaled the Cumbre del Sol for the first time, and it was clear this was no easy task, as Mattia Cattaneo's face shows, per ProCyclingNews.eu:

Katusha took the lead in the peloton, aiming to close the gap with the leaders, and this in turn allowed the top Movistar and Astana stars to sit in the shade as the pack headed for the final climb. The temperatures were as high as they've been all week, which led to a slower pace and a mad scramble by the riders to find the shade.

Geraint Thomas managed to bridge the gap on his own, but at the base of the final climb, the peloton was just 20 seconds behind the leaders. 

For the first time in this Vuelta, the favourites opened up early, with all riders positioning themselves from the start of the climb. Nairo Quintana was the first to attack, with Rodriguez and Aru right behind him, before team-mate Valverde tried a jump of his own.

Froome struggled to keep up early but managed to return to the front, and Dumoulin was eager to reclaim the red jersey, attacking as well. Johan Esteban Chaves was able to keep his wheel while Valverde dropped back, via VeloVoices:

The final climb may not have been particularly long, but fans were treated to a true spectacle. Dumoulin and Aru in particular attacked time and time again in an attempt to get rid of Chaves, and the Dutchman finally built a lead with one kilometer left to ride.

Out of nowhere, Froome appeared to find new life, bridging the gap with Dumoulin before passing the Dutchman, but Dumoulin timed his jump to perfection and managed to beat the Tour de France winner to the finish line.

Froome praised the Dutchman's effort, thinking he had won the stage at some point, according to Team Sky's official website:

"

I'm gutted. I thought I had it for a second there. But Dumoulin has shown incredible form in this race and hats off to him. He's a young rider with a bright future ahead of him.

The guys did a fantastic job for me today keeping myself, Nicolas Roche, Mikel Nieve and Sergio Henao - the four climbers - at the front of the race, and bringing us into the climb in a perfect position. So we've got them to thank today for all the hard work they did.

"

As shared by the Inner Ring, the riders had to dig deep on Sunday, and the organisation came prepared:

Dumoulin will wear the red jersey heading into Monday's stage and should like his chances of staying in the top spot for the time being. Once the high mountains come along, however, the likes of Froome, Quintana, Valverde, Aru and Rodriguez will like their chances of changing things up with a big stage win.

Monday's stage toward Castellon will be the final one before the first rest day, so expect some of the lesser-known riders to aim for the win in a long break. The Alto del Desierto de las Palmas is a typical Spanish climb, rather short but quite steep, but there are nearly 20 kilometers of flat roads to be navigated after the summit.

Whichever sprinter survives the climb best will have a good chance of grabbing the win, and with Sagan out of the Vuelta, the road to victory seems wide open. An early break would need to have a lead of at least two minutes to have a chance to last after the final climb―difficult but manageable. Either way, Monday's stage will be unpredictable.

Follow @ReverschPass