In theory, the sprint teams should be able to control the race. Albeit not entirely flat, the route is fairly straightforward. Two uphills stand out. The Puerto de Biar is crested with 70 kilometres, so it crops up too early to have any lasting effect.
Possibly, the Puerto de Tibi is a chance to make a difference. The irregular ascent tops out 38 kilometres from the line, which is still very far, but it could be seen as a launchpad for stage hopefuls as the rest of the route is predominantly on descent.
The climb itself is almost 7 kilometres long and leads to the village Ibi. The first 1.5 kilometres rise at 7% before a short drop will give the sprinters some relief. Then it goes back to 7% for the rest of the climb.
Ibi is situated at an elevation of 723 metres. The route descents in 25 kilometres to 70 metres before the run-in to Alicante is virtually flat. The last kilometre runs slightly uphill.
Favourites 3rd stage 2019 Vuelta a España
*** Philippe Gilbert, Valerio Conti, Patrick Bevin
** Fernando Gaviria, Sam Bennett, Fabio Jakobsen
* Thomas De Gendt, Zdenek Stybar, Luis León Sánchez
Take a look at the route of the 3rd stage of La Vuelta.
Vuelta a España 2019 stage 3: profile and finale
Click on the images to zoom
