PREVIEW | Spanish National Championships Road Race - Ayuso and Movistar seek Carlos Rodríguez's throne

The 2023 Spanish Cycling Championships is shaping up to be an exciting and open competition, in which promising young riders and experienced veterans will fight for the coveted national champion's jersey. With the absence of Carlos Rodríguez, who will participate in the Tour de France 2023, Juan Ayuso emerges as one of the favorites to inherit the legacy left by his compatriot.

Juan Ayuso, after an outstanding performance in the last Tour de Suisse, presents himself as a rider in great shape and with potential to shine in the Spanish Championship. His victory in the final time trial of the Tour de Suisse shows his quality and ability to challenge the other contenders.

Although cycling today is marked by the rise of young talent, the Spanish Championships is a race where experience and veteran riders tend to set the tone. With the exception of Carlos Rodríguez's victory last year, who was crowned at just 21 years of age, in six of the last seven editions cyclists over 30 years of age have triumphed. Names like Omar Fraile, Luis León Sánchez, Alejandro Valverde, José Joaquín Rojas and Gorka Izagirre command respect and have left their mark on Spanish cycling. Although many of them will not be present in this edition, figures like Jesús Herrada, second in 2021 and 2022, are shaping up as contenders capable of putting the main favorites in danger.

The fight for the leading role in the championship also moves to the teams. Movistar Team, the national reference team, will be looking to surpass their previous records. With riders like García Cortina or Lazkano, they will try to face a peloton that appears to be less powerful in comparison. For their part, UAE Team Emirates combines the strength of Marc Soler and Juan Ayuso, who have the ability to stay solo in the mountains and, on the last climb to the Alto de la Cruz Verde, could significantly reduce the peloton.

The championship course consists of 186 kilometers and two passes over the Alto de la Cruz Verde. These 5.6 kilometers of climb with an average gradient of 4.5% represent two key opportunities to break the race. The last climb, just 30 kilometers from the finish, could be decisive in defining the winner. The sprinters, such as Cortina or Aranburu, could take advantage of this uphill finish if they manage to stay in the fight up to this point. The route offers an intriguing challenge that could see bold moves from the start of the race.

The 2023 Spanish Cycling Championships promises to be an exciting and close competition. The absence of Carlos Rodríguez opens the door for new stars to shine on the national scene, while the veterans will seek to maintain their supremacy in the championship. Juan Ayuso emerges as one of the main favorites, backed by his outstanding performance in the Tour of Switzerland. The final outcome will be an epic duel between youth and experience, where only the strongest and boldest will be able to claim the coveted Spanish champion's jersey.

The Elite UCI-Elite men's peloton of this Spanish Championships will ride on the same roads and, in fact, will complete the same route as the U23s with the difference that the initial loop will have about 20 kilometers more. After the start, the Elite will pass through Valdemorillo and head to Villanueva de la Cañada and Quijorna before reaching Navalagamella. This variation will be the only difference with the U23 route, since after completing this initial loop of almost 80 km that will take them back to the finish line, they will face two laps of the circular route that includes the ascent to the Alto de la Cruz Verde, where a beautiful fight for the right to wear the Spanish champion's jersey will surely be unleashed. In total, there will be 186.1 km with 3,150 meters of elevation gain to close this 2023 edition of the national race, which promises to be exciting.

Favorites Spanish Road Championship 2023:
*** Juan Ayuso
** Alex Aranburu, Iván Garcia Cortina, Oier Lazkano
* Jesús Herrada, Gonzalo Serrano, Luis León Sanchez, Roger Adriá.

Pick: Juan Ayuso