Favorites stage 12 Vuelta a Espana 2024 | Short, but certainly powerful!
Cycling
A new day in the Vuelta brings new climbs. In stage twelve, the riders will again face some elevation gain, although this time it's not as long or daunting as in some of the other stages. IDLProCycling.com walks you through the stage!
Course stage 12 Vuelta a España 2024
The riders will start at the thermal baths of Ourense, located in Galicia. It is a relatively short stage, only 137 kilometers. For this reason, the riders will also take off a bit later than usual, at 14:10, which is a nice change in a race as big and long as this Vuelta.
From the start, the road immediately goes uphill for several kilometers at around four percent, where we will undoubtedly see the first attacks of the day. On paper, this is another day that suits the brave riders, as there are no insurmountable climbs to tackle.
This is true for most of the day: only the final climb, the Montaña de Manzaneda, is categorized by the organization. However, this does not mean we won't be cycling uphill, as the entire day goes up and down through the rugged terrain of northwestern Spain.
Ultimately, the Montaña de Manzaneda will prove crucial, with a summit finish on a climb of 15.4 kilometers at an average gradient of 4.7 percent. If we look more closely at the slope, we see that it's an irregular climb. The real sting is in the tail, with the penultimate kilometer at 8.1 percent and a peak of up to twelve percent.
Climbs
137.4 km: Montana de Manzaneda (15.4 km at 4.7%)
Times
Start: 2:10 PM locally / 8:10 AM EST
Finish: 5:22 PM locally / 11:22 AM EST
Weather stage 12 Vuelta a España 2024
It won't be as hot as at the start of the race in southern Spain, but even on Thursday, the temperature will rise above 30 degrees Celsius. The wind is mostly slightly against the riders, but on the final climb, there will be a tailwind.
Favorites stage 12 Vuelta a España 2024
It's a short stage, but with a finish like this one, this stage could be one for an early breakaway. Because it's only 138 kilometers long, teams and riders must consider that a long battle for the day's breakaway could favor the general classification contenders. If it's not too long until the base of the final climb, a team might decide to take control.
In our opinion, the most likely scenario leans slightly more towards an early breakaway, where, in addition to the climbers, we should also watch out for riders with a strong engine and explosiveness at the end. These riders often come to the fore on such climbs. Think of Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike), but also Jhonatan Narváez (INEOS Grenadiers) and Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla).
Regarding the pure climbers, we look to a powerhouse like Jay Vine of UAE-Team Emirates, but also other guys in good form such as Harold Tejada (Astana Qazaqstan Team), Pablo Castrillo (Equipo Kern Pharma), Max Poole (dsm-firmenich PostNL), Matthew Riccitello and Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech). Brandon McNulty (UAE) has also shown improvement in recent days, as has stage winner Eddie Dunbar of Jayco-AlUla.
Looking at the general classification riders, Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) could really stand out on a course like this. The Slovenian in German service usually has the strongest uphill sprint, although David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) and Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) can also be dangerous. This is also true for Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost).
For less explosive types like Enric Mas (Movistar), Adam Yates (UAE-Team Emirates), Mikel Landa (Soudal Quick-Step), Carlos Rodriguez (INEOS Grenadiers) and leader Ben O'Connor (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), this stage will be mainly about limiting their losses.
Favorites stage 12 Vuelta a España 2024, according to IDLProCycling.com
Top favorites: Harold Tejada (Astana Qazaqstan Team) and Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
Outsiders: Jay Vine (UAE-Team Emirates), Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike), Enric Mas (Movistar) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost)
Long shots: Pablo Castrillo (Equipo Kern Pharma), Jhonatan Narváez (INEOS Grenadiers), Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech), David Gaudu Groupama-FDJ), Max Poole (dsm-firmenich PostNL), Adam Yates, Brandon McNulty (UAE-Team Emirates) and Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek)
Poll
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Latest Comments
- Well explained, thanks for the clarity! Daniel DantasDanieldantas20-12-2024
- This is the kind of 'news' that belongs in a cheap tabloid. No matter how boring the offseason gets, nobody wants to read this.
santiagobenites19-12-2024 - I wish we could have seen him try. He'd absolutely get dropped before Pogi overtakes his domestiquesVeganpotter10-12-2024
- Talk is cheap! Next year barring crashes with a healthy team... all well be on track! Some need to talk to make a headline!mootman27-11-2024
- I do not see this event listed on HBO Max Sports Online? Can anyone confirm? Thanks!
MrYuck23-11-2024 - It seemed that he was focusing forward at the time of the crash, after seeing a quick video snippet. But one thing I think he should focus on more intently is breaking a bad habit he has, right now. And that is his constant looking over his shoulders. He does that so much, that I am very sure it is not good for him. Simply watch videos of the greats of CX and you will see very little of that constant looking over their shoulders. That is a behavior that betrays a bit of insecurity on his part. He shouldn't be so concerned, incessantly, about what is over his shoulder. He needn't worry they didn't all disappear. He neds to keep his focus more ahead of himself, and he needs to pay a bit more attention to himself, in a confident manner. It is very frustrating to watch, because it is apparent that he has a lot of potential, and is in much better shape thwan many of his competitors, but the mental game needs to be sharpened more, because that part of strategy plays a huge part in the final results
reemmo022-11-2024 - hahahaha love this shit! I didnt even watched the race, but reading all the gossip articles of how stupid this is!Zatoichi19-11-2024
- Van Aert is really handsome. He can influence me all day! Ditto for Philipsen. Why do you think many of us love cycling?: to see heroic attempts at climbing mountains at high altitudes or to watch speedsters sprint for the finish line or to watch a human being ride at break neck speed down a tricky descent? No, it's all about their lean physiques and muscular legs. (apologies for objectifying these dedicated and amazing athletes).BarwonHeadsUp25-10-2024
- It is unfortunate that the author can't feel the joy that Pogacar brings to the sport and his fans who are legion and I for one feel lucky to have watched such a memorable performance and historic season From the Strada until yesterday with multiple wins in stages in both tours and beyond dominance in the World's. He is proud to wear the Rainbow stripes, shows his leadership to protect his fellows and is as courteous and sportsman-like as the sport allows. He goes early to not have to respond to each attack as all the rest would make him do it. Any racer who could would do the same. Don't "grow tired" of greatness as it is always fleeting.ccrider13-10-2024
- What load of rubbish. Pog is likely a once in a generation cyclist, the like of which hasn't been seen since 'the Cannibal '. How many people were complaining that Merckx was making racing predictable? I remember this year's World RR as one of the most exciting I've watched. Mainly BECAUSE Pog was the favourite and launched what everyone thought (Pog included) was a suicidal attack with 80km to go. For the next 2 hours, I was on the edge of my seat thinking "this is too much, even for Pog". Maybe Zonnefeld prefers the snooze-fest that is a bunch sprint? Like most people I know, I can't watch two hours of the bunch riding very fast... I wait for the final 5km and watch just the sprint. In any event, most races are won from a sprint or lone break. What difference does it make who makes the lone break? Ultimately, the other contenders will have to figure out a way to beat Pog. Even if that means collaboration between teams. It's going to be an exciting few seasons, until the next Pog arrives on the scene. If this is boring, heaven knows what exciting looks like!Michael513-10-2024