Vuelta 2017 Favourites stage 11: Wanted - climbing legs for tough finale

The 11th stage in the Vuelta a España is marked by a tough finale. Following a rather unremarkable course the finale is something to look forward to. The last 60 kilometres are all uphill, with the exception of an intermediate drop of 14.8 kilometres. A climber is going to win, that's for sure - but is it going to be a GC guy or an attacker? (Slideshow route/profile)

The 11th stage of the Vuelta is a two-faced race. Following a modest climb shortly after the start the pilots ride 46 kilometres on the flat before a section on rolling roads runs to a finale with two huge climbs, the Velefique and the Calar Alto.

Is this going to be a race for attackers or GC riders? Hard to say in advance. It will depend on the lead with which the break away hits the Alto de Velefique. When the head start is big enough, we can expect the stage winner to be in the front group. Otherwise, the GC battle ignites on the Calar Alto with the favourites fighting for victory and time bonuses.

The Alto de Velefique is a 13.2 kilometres ascent at 7.3% with the steepest sections on the lower slopes, while the climb flattens out near the summit. The ensuing 14.8 kilometres descent continues onto the 15.5 kilometres closing climb to the Observatorio Astronómico de Calar Alto. With steepest ramps of up to 18% and an average gradient of 6%, the Calar Alto is a prototypical irregular climb.

Favourites 11th stage 2017 Vuelta

*** Miguel Ángel López, Rafal Majka, Chris Froome, Alberto Contador
** Jan Polanc, Bob Jungels, Wilco Kelderman, Darwin Atapuma, Serge Pauwels
* Ilnur Zakarin, Vincenzo Nibali, Tejay van Garderen, Wout Poels, Joe Dombrowski