The 2015 Vuelta a España

A Tough Upcoming Battle in the Vuelta a Espana

The 2015 Vuelta a España has the best starting best list of pro cyclists in years when it starts in Puerto Banus on Saturday. Top cyclists for the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France are going to participate in the 70th edition of the Vuelta. These top cyclists include Chris Froome (Team Sky), Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team), Fabio Aro (Team Astana), Joachim Rodriguez (Team Katusha) and Tejay Van Garderen (BMC Racing Team). Only Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo), who won this year's Giro d’Italia, will sit out this year’s Vuelta. Contador has ridden in three consecutive Grand Tours, the 2014 Vuelta, the 2015 Giro and Tour.
Generally, the Tour de France champion would pass on the Vuelta a Espana, which is occurs four weeks after the Tour. Only two Tour winners have competed in the Vuelta since 1995 when the Vuelta moved to the late summer versus the spring. However, Team Sky and Chris Froome will compete in the Vuelta this year. His late entry in the Vuelta means that the top 4 cyclists from the Tour will compete in the Vuelta. This gives this edition of the Vuelta a deep lineup of top tour competitors. Team Sky will have Geraint Thomas and Nicolas Roche support Froome. Froome finished in second place in the Vuelta in 2011 and 2014, and in fourth place in 2012. Froome hopes to become the third cyclists to win both the Tour and the Vuelta in the same years as Jacques Anquetil (1963) and Bernard Hinault (1978). Although Froome said that he is rested and ready for the Vuelta. The layout of the Vuelta route favors Froome. However, we will have to see whether Froome is rested from his Tour victory.
Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde of Team Movistar will force Froome and Team Sky to battle for the Red Jersey. Both Quintana and Valverde performed well in the last stages of the Tour. If Froome had not built up a sizable lead prior to the last week of the Tour, the contest for the Tour Yellow Jersey could have come down to the Stage 20 on the Alpe d’Huez. Quintana came in second, and Valverde came in third in the Tour. The question for Team Movistar is who will lead the team in the Vuelta, Quintana or Valverde?
Vincenzo Nibali (Astana Pro Team) had a strong finish in the Tour, coming in fourth after a tough first week in that race. Nibali leads a strong Astana team in the Vuelta, with Fabio Aro, who came in second in the Giro d’Italia and Mikel Landa, who came in third in the Giro. Although Nibali is one of six cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, the Vuelta in 2010, the Giro in 2013, and the Tour in 2014, the Vuelta has been the focus of Aru. Nibali was selected for the Vuelta team late, which, like Team Movistar, complicates the leader role for this race.
Thirty-six-year-old Joachim Rodriguez of Team Katusha earned a fourth place in 2014 and 2013 and a third place in 2012 in the Vuelta.  Rodriguez won two stages in last month’s Tour. The mountainous character of the Vuelta works in favor of Rodriguez.
Tejay Van Garderen (BMC Racing Team) returns to Grand Tours after withdrawing from the Tour due to illness. Van Garderen passed up defending his two consecutive victories the USA Pro Challenge currently going on in Colorado to race on the bigger stage of the Vuelta. Van Garderen and BMC teammate Sammy Sánchez will be the dark horse competitors in this race.

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