Belgian rider Felippe Gilbert won a testing finish to stage 19 of the Vuelta cycle race as he was the strongest rider over the last kilometer into the historic city of Toledo.

Gilbert took advantage of a steep ramp in the closing meters to win a stage that had a sting in the tail.

That sting also saw overall leader, Nibali extended his overall lead at the head of the race. The Italian was in the right place to take advantage of a split in the peloton that left second place Ezequiel Mosquera finishing 12 seconds behind.

The 232 kilometers between Piedrahita and Toledo made this the longest stage of the race, but apart from the distance, the only problem for the riders was a blustery wind that blew across the mainly flat terrain.

The wind also made it hard work for any potential breakaways to open up a big gap on the peloton and once again a bunch sprint looked to be assured.

The fact that the closing kilometers were ridden along the motorway also made the work of the peloton easier, but the stage had two stings in the tale.

The first came in the shape of a one kilometer climb four kilometers from the finish.

Luis Sanchez Leon tried to forge a break on the climb, but the peloton kept in touch with the Colombia team again working hard for Mark Cavendish.

The group kept together but another steep ramp in the closing 1000 meters finally fractured the peloton, leaving specialist sprinters such as Cavendish out of the final race to the line.

The conditions were perfect for Gilbert, who held off the challenge of Tyler Farrar to win his third stage of the Vuelta.

However, the closing meters also had their effect on the overall leadership. Vincenzo Nibali finished just a second behind Gilbert as a gap opened up, while Ezequiel Mosquera finished a further 12 seconds behind the Italian.

Nibali now holds a 50 second lead over Mosquera ahead of Saturday's testing stage which takes on thee first category climbs to finish at the top of Bola del Mundo, the highest mountain in this year's race.

Belgian rider Felippe Gilbert won a testing finish to stage 19 of the Vuelta cycle race as he was the strongest rider over the last kilometer into the historic city of Toledo.

Gilbert took advantage of a steep ramp in the closing meters to win a stage that had a sting in the tail.

That sting also saw overall leader, Nibali extended his overall lead at the head of the race. The Italian was in the right place to take advantage of a split in the peloton that left second place Ezequiel Mosquera finishing 12 seconds behind.

The 232 kilometers between Piedrahita and Toledo made this the longest stage of the race, but apart from the distance, the only problem for the riders was a blustery wind that blew across the mainly flat terrain.

The wind also made it hard work for any potential breakaways to open up a big gap on the peloton and once again a bunch sprint looked to be assured.

The fact that the closing kilometers were ridden along the motorway also made the work of the peloton easier, but the stage had two stings in the tale.

The first came in the shape of a one kilometer climb four kilometers from the finish.

Luis Sanchez Leon tried to forge a break on the climb, but the peloton kept in touch with the Colombia team again working hard for Mark Cavendish.

The group kept together but another steep ramp in the closing 1000 meters finally fractured the peloton, leaving specialist sprinters such as Cavendish out of the final race to the line.

The conditions were perfect for Gilbert, who held off the challenge of Tyler Farrar to win his third stage of the Vuelta.

However, the closing meters also had their effect on the overall leadership. Vincenzo Nibali finished just a second behind Gilbert as a gap opened up, while Ezequiel Mosquera finished a further 12 seconds behind the Italian.

Nibali now holds a 50 second lead over Mosquera ahead of Saturday's testing stage which takes on thee first category climbs to finish at the top of Bola del Mundo, the highest mountain in this year's race.