Vuelta 2023 Route stage 9: Cartagena - Caravaca de la Cruz

Sunday 3 September - The 9th stage of La Vuelta travels from Cartagena, on the Mediterranean Coast, to Caravaca de la Cruz, which is located in the mountains of Murcia. The route is 184.5 kilometres long and the finish climb adds up to 8.1 kilometres at 5.4%.

Cartagena means literally ‘new city’. But it's not that new at all. The Carthaginians formed the town in the third century before Christ. While the Carthaginians were seafarers, the peloton is quite the opposite. So the route leads inland into the Murcia region.

The first part of the stage is flat before the route starts to climb after approximately one hour of racing. The Puerto Casas de Marina la Perdiz is a 11.5 kilometres long climb at 4.9%. The route then continues in a more lumpy fashion. The roads go up and down during the rest of the day, but both the length of the hills and the gradients are not intimidating at all.

On paper, stage 9 at La Vuelta looks promising for attackers and if the race does pan out with a successful breakaway the finish climb is sure to liquidate the lesser climbers on board. It is 8.2 kilometres long and averaging 5.5%, but that's not an apt description at all. It's a wildly irregular ascent with short downhills playing leapfrog with sections at 15%. The steepest stretch goes up at 20%, while the last kilometre ramps up to 9.5%.

The first three riders on the line gain time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while the intermediate sprint comes with 6, 4 and 2 seconds.

Ride the route yourself? Download GPX 9th stage 2023 Vuelta.

Another interesting read: results 9th stage 2023 Vuelta.