The battles for pink and yellow have come and gone, now the peloton will duke it out over 21 challenging days of racing; fighting over steep mountains, full-gas flat stages and efforts against the clock as they battle for the Maillot Rojo and more, at the last Grand Tour showdown – the Vuelta a España.
Known for its interesting and unique stage design, this year’s edition of La Vuelta is no different and provides a variety of terrain where everyone in the peloton should find something to their liking. Kicking off with a team time trial in Barcelona, mountain finishes on stages three and five should already set the GC battle alight, while the rest of the first week should see the sprinters or escape artists rewarded. Heading into week two a test against the clock once again sees the peloton return to action before a mixed bag of terrain, including a brutal looking stage 13 which features roughly 4000 metres of climbing and a finish on the Col du Tourmalet packed into 135 kilometres. Continuing to make its way across the northern part of the country before heading southwards, the action should be hot until the very end at the final stage into the capital of Madrid.
Team dsm-firmenich head to the start line in Barcelona, adorned in their distinctive two-striped jersey and ready to get stuck into what should be an exciting 21 days of racing.
Team dsm-firmenich coach Phil West expressed: “We’re looking forward to starting the final Grand Tour of the year at the Vuelta a España. We have a nice balance of experience in our line-up with four of our guys making their three-week debut which will be an important step in their development. Sportive wise, our main goal will be to search for our opportunities over the 21 days, hunting for stage results on the mixed terrain; with chances in the mountains and hilly days for our climbers, while our rouleurs will play their cards on the rolling terrain, and of course we have the sprints as well. With our line-up we are also looking to the future with our young GC talents; using it as an opportunity to learn from our more experienced riders on how to ride GC in a three-week race, which will be an invaluable experience for the coming years. As for the route, there is something for everyone throughout the three weeks with sprint stages, hilly breakaway days, and challenging days in the mountains with some famous and brutally tough climbs. As a team, we are really motivated after some nice team camps and good recent racing, and we’re excited to pin on our numbers again in Barcelona.”
Line-up
Romain Bardet (FRA)
Romain Combaud (FRA)
Alberto Dainese (ITA)
Sean Flynn (GBR)
Chris Hamilton (AUS)
Lorenzo Milesi (ITA)
Oscar Onley (GBR)
Max Poole (GBR)
