Preview - Vuelta a Espana 2022 stage 12

A transition day is what some may call it at the Vuelta a Espana, as stage 12 sees the riders head further and further into the southwest of Spain. The route will mostly follow the Mediterranean coast as was the case today, however the difference is that a summit finish has been placed.

193 kilometers on the menu, by no means a short day, and one which will feature a difficult rolling start which may see many suffer if the pace is high. There is little more to point out through the day however, with the city of Malaga to be crossed halfway through the day, but it will all be about the final climb.

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That will be just outside of Estepona, the ascent to Peñas Blancas. Officially it is 18.9 kilometers at 6.5% a serious mountain ascent that takes the riders from sea level to 1260 meters of altitude in the coastal mountains. It is a climb that’s relatively constant. It does feature some areas with a little smaller and higher gradient, but there is never truly much restbite, and the long effort will weigh on the legs of many on what is the first mountain stage of the second week where the fatigue will start to be felt on some riders.

CyclingUpToDate prediction:
**** Remco Evenepoel
*** Enric Mas, Primoz Roglic
** Jay Vine, Juan Ayuso, Carlos Rodríguez
* Miguel Ángel López, Tao Geoghegan Hart, João Almeida, Ben O'Connor