The Italian rider Matteo Trentin won his third leg of the Vuelta on Friday after sprinting to claim the 13th stage, while Chris Froome maintained his overall lead.

Trentin’s hat-trick of wins gave his Quick-Step Floors team their fifth stage victory in the event this year. He was helped into position near the front by his team-mates before he powered past two opponents over the final few metres. The Italian triumphed by more than a bike length to complete the 198.4-km (123.2-mile) ride from Coin to Tomares in 4hr 25min 13sec. He has now won six grand tour stages, his treble here adding to two Tour wins and one in the Giro in 2016.

“To be honest, the finale wasn’t to my taste. On paper it looked like it was less hard, especially from 3km to 2km to go. But we decided to go for it,” Trentin said later. “The guys were incredible. Everyone did their job and when the team works like that you have to finish it off. It’s amazing. The race is not over for the team. We are betting on more.”

Froome crossed the line seconds later, with his other title rivals. The former Tour de France champion, Vincenzo Nibali of Italy, remained 59sec behind the Briton in second place and followed by Colombian Esteban Chaves, 2:13 behind. The peloton caught the breakaway rider Alessandro de Marchi near the end of the stage as the course went through the city of Sevilla.

After his two falls on Thursday that allowed Nibali and others to reduce his lead, Froome stayed out of trouble on the mainly flat ride which came before two mountain stages. Saturday’s trek is a 108.7-mile route starting in Ecija that finishes at a special-category summit in Sierra de la Pandera. That is followed on Sunday by one that takes them over two category-one climbs before another special-category finish at Alta Hoya de la Mora.

Trentin’s Quick-Step Floors team-mates Julian Alaphilippe and Yves Lampaert have also won stages in the three-week race this year. The Vuelta ends in Madrid on 10 September.