As they seem to do every year, the race organisers have put together a highly challenging Vuelta a España route, designed to test the climbing abilities of every rider across some of the most challenging gradients and ascents Spain has to offer.
This year, the three-week race includes no fewer than 11 categorised uphill finishes – yes, that’s over half the stages – varying from short final kickers, to 10% gradients at the end of kilometres-long climbs.
As well as the headline mountain stages, there are a number of other stages that will matter – there’s a team time trial and an individual time trial, plus punchy days, windy days, and, of course, climbs as famous as the Angliru.
With only a few days before the race gets underway, and the final Grand Tour victory of the year on the line between the Vuelta a España contenders including Jonas Vingegaard and Juan Ayuso, here are five of the most important stages in this year’s Vuelta a España – where the red jersey can be won, lost and decided.
Want to know how to tune in to each of these key stages? Check out our guide to how to watch the Vuelta a España to find out exactly where the race is being shown, wherever you are.
Stage 2 – an early uphill finish
Alba – Puerto Limone (157km)
The days of straightforward Grand Tour opening weeks are decidedly over, and this year’s Vuelta route offers no exception to that rule, including an uphill finish on just the second day of racing in Italy where time can already be gained or lost.
Starting in Alba and finishing in Limone Piemonte, stage 2 is officially categorised as ‘flat’, but finishes with a category 2 climb, topping out at 1,383m above sea level.
The official climb is 7.6km long with an average gradient of 5.4%, though the road rises for a good 10km before that, making for a dragging finale. Though not the toughest finish in the world, and no categorised climbs preceding the final one, some selections should be made in the finale and someone will certainly lose time.
Without the uphill sprint specialists like Tadej Pogačar or Primož Roglič, it will be interesting to see how this stage is…
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