In a dramatic stage 17 of the Vuelta a España, Philippe Gilbert took a perfectly calculated second stage win after his Detuninck-Quick Step team dominated a 40-man breakaway group for over 200km.

"It was a historic stage. I've never ridden a stage like that before," Gilbert said after the stage. It was a 220-km team time trial, and seven of the eight riders were ahead."

Gilbert, who had already clinched the win on the hilly course in Bilbao, timed his ride to perfection on the gradual climb to Guadalajara. It was his seventh win in the Vuelta a España and his 11th in a Grand Tour.

"It was a textbook finish," explained teammate Tim Declercq.

"When I came to the final, I knew Sam [Bennett] was the man to beat. From the moment the race started, I pulled for him to run as hard as he could."

"Zdenek Stibal made some great moves. That made Sam move too fast and I was left alone to follow Phil (Gilbert)."

"I was the only one who was able to get to the finish line.

Gilbert has never won three stages in a Grand Tour, but with the Toledo stage on Friday still ahead of his original goal, the possibility remains.

"When I came here, I said I didn't have many chances, but now I've won two and a third is quite possible," Gilbert said.

"The most important thing is that I have got the form and the strength for the World Championships.

Gilbert predicted that the harvest of such a dramatic stage, averaging over 50 km/h, is that everyone's legs will be sore.

"I wouldn't be surprised if there is a lot of chatter among the teams tonight, and they will be very eager to get revenge on the big mountain stage tomorrow," Gilbert said.

Apart from Gilbert, who took his third Vuelta stage win of the year for Dečuninck-Quick-Step, another happy event for the Belgian team was James Knox, who moved into eighth place overall. Knox, who shared a room with Gilbert in the Vuelta, is a Belgian who is "a quick learner."

"He is still trying to see his limits, but he has a great future in stage racing. But he has a great future in stage races. He's another Englishman who is very likely to do well in that kind of race," Gilbert said.

"He's in eighth place. If that's possible, I'm sure he'll do well.

If Knox changes paths and goes for the Classics, specialists like Declercq say the Englishman is shaping up nicely in that field as well, judging by how he raced in Wednesday's "Echelon Break."

"James did a great job. He was one of the riders who was pulling the most in the early stages, and sometimes I would say, 'James, we still have 200km to go! He is really growing in this Vuelta and today was a great performance by him."

"He is a great rider.

As for Gilbert, he was asked why he didn't stay with Detunink-Quickstep for 2020.

"It was simple, because the team didn't offer me. 'Fortunately, I could have gone elsewhere, and I'm feeling very motivated about my new project with Sudar-Lotto.'

But for now, anyway, Gilbert is racking up some great wins in Deceuninck-Quickstep. And Wednesday's victory at the Vuelta a España was arguably one of his most memorable.