Vuelta 2021 Route stage 3: Santo Domingo de Silos

Vuelta 2021 Route stage 3: Santo Domingo de Silos - Picón Blanco

Monday 16 August - La Vuelta serves the first mountain top finish on the third day of action. The 203 kilometres race finishes at the Picón Blanco, which is a 7.8 kilometres climb at 9.3%.

The first phase goes either up or down before the riders crest Puerto de de Manquillo at kilometre 39. A long descent at shalllow gradients with a number of uphill kicks takes towards the midway point of the race.

The riders enter a flat zone of 70 kilometres before the Alto de Bocos appears, a 3 kilometres climb at approximately 8%.

The descent leads onto a false flat – first up, then down – before the riders move through Espinosa de los Monteros, a village at the foot of the Picón Blanco at an elevation of 762 metres. The climb leads to an Abandoned military base at 1,468 metres. The average gradient of 9.3% is biased as the 7.8 kilometres ascent climbs for kilometres at more than 10%. The steepest ramp – 15% – appears just before the finish line.

In recent years, the finish climb was included on the Vuelta a Burgos. Mikel Landa (2017), Miguel Ángel López (2018), Iván Sosa (2019), and Remco Evenepoel (2020) took the spoils. The Flemish youngster finished 18 seconds ahead of George Bennett with Mikel Landa another 7 seconds further down.

Another interesting read: favourites 3rd stage 2021 Vuelta a España.

The 3rd stage of La Vuelta starts 12.10 and the race is expected to finish around 17.30 – both are local times.