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September 15, 2023
The penultimate stage of this yr’s Vuelta will happen in the identical space of Guadarrama, however the climbs to be tackled aren’t as large
Distance: 208km
Begin location: Manzanares El Actual
End location: Guadarrama
Begin time: 11:55 CEST
End time (approx): 17:30 CEST
Mendacity to the north of Madrid are the Sierras de Guadarrama, the japanese finish of the Sistema Central mountain vary that spans horizontally throughout the Iberian Peninsula. It’s a handy pure panorama for the organisers of the Vuelta a España, because it supplies the proper terrain for one last climactic showdown between the general contenders simply earlier than they arrive on the race’s regular end in Madrid.
That certainly is what has occurred in a number of Vueltas of current years. In 2012, Alberto Contador managed handy on to seal general victory regardless of being dropped by Joaquin Rodríguez; in 2015, Fabio Aru and his Astana succeeded in cracking Tom Dumoulin on the Puerto de la Morcuera to take the pink jersey; and simply final yr Enric Mas attacked Remco Evenepoel on that exact same climb, however against this couldn’t shed his rival because the Belgian completed off the job.
Stage 20 profile sourced by way of the Vuelta web site
The penultimate stage of this yr’s Vuelta will happen in the identical space of Guadarrama, however the climbs to be tackled aren’t as large. Whereas the Puerto de la Morcuera and different mountains that witnessed the drama of aforementioned editions have been of class one standing, at this time there isn’t a single effort ranked greater than class three. However the riders defending positions on the GC shouldn’t make the error that they will afford to loosen up simply but — although not one of the climbs are particularly arduous, there are a whole lot of them. In reality, there are a minimum of 10 summits to be overcome, collectively amounting to over 4,000m of elevation achieve.
Added to the truth that this stage is, at 208km, the longest of the Vuelta, and this is without doubt one of the most atypical ends to a Grand Tour in current reminiscence and can be very troublesome to foretell. With no single standout climb to make use of as an apparent springboard, assaults may nearly come from anyplace, whereas the way in which the street weaves across the space, with no prolonged flat stretches and lots of the climbs tackled twice, means it type of resembles a spring Traditional. If raced like a spring Traditional, assaults may come from very far out, probably from bold GC contenders in search of one final roll of the cube. Nonetheless large their lead is likely to be going into the stage, whoever is within the pink jersey will have to be very attentive in order to not get caught out, and have a robust crew round him to assist management the race. If not, this stage has the potential to show the race on its head and trigger dramatic late shocks.
Contenders
There may be one rider going into this stage as a transparent favorite, and that’s none apart from Remco Evenepoel (Soudal–Fast-Step). He’s received three levels to date and is on the prowl for extra so as to add to his tally. He’s a two-time Liège-Bastogne-Liège winner additionally, a race with parcours similar to this Vuelta stage. He’s appeared nearly unstoppable this final week, so anybody trying to beat him on this stage must convey their very best.
However with there solely being this stage and tomorrow’s anticipated dash in Madrid left, that is the final alternative for a lot of riders to get a stage win. One rider, nonetheless, received’t be going house disillusioned having received stage 15 however might be a contender to double up on his victories, Rui Costa (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty). If he can get within the breakaway, he’ll definitely be one the opposite riders might want to keep watch over.
Andreas Kron (Lotto Dstny) is one other stage winner who will need to goal this stage. He’s come near a second victory since his stage two win however has simply missed the mark. He was one of many riders within the break to stay to Evenepoel’s wheel on stage 19 as he set a demanding tempo till he tried an assault 35km to go which noticed him dropped. However he possesses an explosive kick which can be wanted on a stage like this. Lotto Dsnty additionally has Thomas De Gendt, who they may select to ship up the street for the stage win.
Fourth at this yr’s Liège-Bastogne-Liège behind Evenepoel was Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain-Victorious), who fits punchy climbs like this. He’s appeared robust all through this yr’s Vuelta, particularly on stage 15, the place he was within the early break, coming third general.
One other rider who has appeared extraordinarily robust all through this race is Romain Bardet (DSM-Firmenich), who might be a contender for the stage. He’ll be bolstered by the crew’s win on stage 19 and can need to ship for DSM for a second day working.
Iván García Cortina (Movistar), Driers Van Gestel (TotalEnergies), Nico Denz (Bora-Hansgrohe), and Marijn van den Berg (EF Schooling-EasyPost) might be different contenders for the stage win.
Prediction
We expect Remco Evenepoel will dominate the day as soon as once more and take the stage win.
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