Preview Clasica Jaén 2025 | Wout van Aert bit the dust last year, but bites the dust again in Spanish gravel race

Just over two weeks after the cyclo-cross world championships in Liévin, France, Wout van Aert is already back on the scene. The Belgian from Visma | Lease a Bike is starting his first series of road races in 2025, which, in addition to the Clasica Jaén discussed in this article, consists of the Tour of the Algarve and the Opening Weekend. But we will start with the Spanish Strade Bianche!

Although the Clasica Jaén is only in its fourth edition, it is swiftly gaining popularity, just like its Tuscan counterpart. Gravel is also becoming increasingly popular in Spain, as evidenced by the fact that Alejandro Valverde, among others, has taken up the discipline on behalf of Movistar.

Last year, Spanish champion Oier Lazkano represented the team in the Clasica Jaén, resulting in a beautiful victory on an altered course. The year before, Tadej Pogacar had already added his name to the race's list of winners, while Kazakhstan's Alexey Lutsenko will forever remain the race's first winner.

Practical information Clasica Jaén 2025

• Monday, February 17, 2024
• Participants 
• Classification: 1.1

In this article

• Latest winners
• Course, weather and times
• Favorites
• TV information

Latest winners Clasica Jaén 2025

2024 Oier Lazkano
2023 Tadej Pogacar
2022 Alexey Lutsenko

Route weather and times Clasica Jaén 2025

While the first three editions of the race were a story between Baéza and Úbeda, this year, it is all about that second place. The riders will start here at 7:00 AM EST and finish around 11.13 AM EST. From the start, the riders will first do a big lap, followed by just over eighty kilometers before they hit the first unpaved roads.

Shortly after, they will enter the first twelve gravel sections and descend steeply to the local circuit in and around Úbeda. We do this after the 5.1-kilometer uphill stretch of Mar de Livos, which is the ideal place to kick things up a notch, and then start the local 32.2-kilometer lap with a small group. This has to be completed twice.

The combination of Juancaballo, Santa Eulalia, and Guadalupe will prove crucial, as these three sectors contain more than twelve kilometers of gravel. Just before the finish line, a final difference can be made on the last 1.2-kilometer-long sector of Vandelvira.

Weather
It is dry in Spain this week, so the organization will not have to cancel this year. Monday will be sunny, with a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius and a light breeze.

Times
Start: 7:00 AM EST
Finish: 11:13 AM EST

Participants & favorites Clasica Jaén 2025

Only twelve teams are participating in the Clasica Jaén. Still, three of the biggest and wealthiest teams in the world are among them: UAE-Emirates XRG, INEOS Grenadiers, and thus Visma | Lease a Bike of Wout van Aert. These teams represent most of the (top) favorites for the race. With the cyclo-cross issues he has already had, we see Van Aert as the most prominent contender, although last year showed how quickly you can also (literally) bite the dust in this race.

Tiesj Benoot is present again, while Sepp Kuss and Menno Huising also have mountain bike backgrounds. Tijmen Graat and Loe van Belle complete the Dutch team, which will also face the dreaded UAE in Spain. There, they will send specialist Tim Wellens to the front, although Isaac del Toro could also be a factor with his mountain bike and gravel background. We don't know exactly what to expect from Marc Soler and Brandon McNulty, although it's always possible that the odds could go either way with them.

INEOS Grenadiers will send double Colombian champion Egan Bernal to the start, who already finished third in Strade Bianche. A race that Michal Kwiatkowski even managed to win twice. The team is also counting on the talents of Axel Laurance, specialist Connor Swift, and the necessary power with Omar Fraile, Ben Turner, and climber Óscar Rodríguez. What a team!

Movistar (Gonzalo Serrano and Gregor Mühlberger) and Decathlon AG2R (Clément Berthet and Stan Dewulf) are the other WorldTour teams at the start. Regarding continental teams and their riders, Q36.5 stands out, with mountain biker Milan Vader and his teammate Gianluca Brambilla.

Who are the favorites for the Clasica Jaén 2025, according to IDLProCycling.com?

Top favorites: Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Tim Wellens (UAE Emirates-XRG)
Outsiders: Egan Bernal, Michal Kwiatkowski (INEOS Grenadiers), Isaac del Toro (UAE Emirates-XRG) and Tiesj Benoot (Visma | Lease a Bike)
Long shots: Axel Laurance, Ben Turner, Connor Swift (INEOS Grenadiers), Marc Soler, Brandon McNulty (UAE-Emirates XRG), Sepp Kuss (Visma | Lease a Bike), Gonzalo Serrano (Movistar), Clément Berthet, Stan Dewulf (Decathlon AG2R) and Milan Vader (Q36.5)

TV broadcast Clasica Jaén 2025

Wonderful! The last two hours of the Clasica Jaén can be followed live on TV on Monday afternoon, as Eurosport has included the Spanish gravel race in the broadcast schedule for the main channel and HBO Max from 9:15 AM EST.

Read also

Van Aert, Tratnik and De Lie, but no Van der Poel, Pedersen, or Pogacar: This is the preliminary start list for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad

Van der Poel (with a stuffy nose) happy his team ignores criticism of him: "If they took that away from me..."

Van Aert — like head of equipment — convinced by mechanical innovation: "Impressed by how it works"

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Get every week the latest news about CYCLING in your inbox!

Subscribe