Vuelta a España 2023

Stage 1 – Barcelona > Barcelona TTT (14.8km)

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This year’s edition of the Vuelta a España starts with a 14.8km team time trial around the streets of Barcelona. The route isn’t as tortuous as that used at the world championships in Glasgow a couple of weeks back, but it’s still quite technical with around eighteen right-angled bends which means limited opportunities to get up to top speed and for riders to safely alternate turns. There’s a small rise about two-thirds in but is otherwise flat and the short distance should ensure that time gaps between the top teams aren’t too big.

Stage 1 Contenders

Although they’ve kicked off the Vuelta quite a few times in recent years, the team time trial isn’t a discipline that is used often in road races, so form lines are few and far between. However, barring an intervention by the weather, we’re likely to see the major players battling it out for the win.

Jumbo-Visma (4/5; 1.80) come here with four of the team that were dominant in the Vuelta a Burgos time trial last week over a similar distance albeit with a stiffish rise in the final kilometre. Adding Tour de France champion Jonas Vingegaard is unlikely to weaken that lineup which also includes three-time Vuelta winner Primož Roglič – they’re the favourites to take the stage.

Ineos Grenadiers (5/4; 2.25) have some big engines to call upon – multiple track and road world champion Filippo Ganna, six-time Spanish national time trial champion Jonathan Castroviejo as well as Geraint Thomas and Thymen Arensman. It’s a very experienced looking lineup that shouldn’t have needed much time to gel in the limited practice time available and are sure to be there or thereabouts.

UAE Team Emirates (14/1) finished 34secs behind Jumbo-Visma in fifth at the Vuelta a Burgos with most of that time lost in the final climb when George Bennett got distanced off the back of the train. However, only three of that team come here and power is added with GC contenders Joäo Almeida and Juan Ayuso, and the young Kiwi Finn Fisher-Black. UAE have an excellent record in time trials in recent years and look tempting at double-figure odds.

Soudal Quick-Step (14/1) have newly crowned world time trial champion and last year’s Vuelta winner, Remco Evenepoel, as their leader which gives them a puncher’s chance of going close. Mattia Cattaneo, who won the ITT in the Tour de Pologne earlier this month, also adds strength but overall, the line-up looks weaker on paper than the three above for this.

Movistar Team (22/1) were second to Jumbo-Visma in Burgos and add four-time Portuguese national time trial champion, Nelson Oliveira, to the team, though are without the strong American time triallist Will Barta. Movistar have delivered some good TT results this season which shows their tech is up to scratch and aren’t without a chance.

Jumbo-Visma won the opening TTT at last year’s race in Utrecht and they’ll have benefited from the pre-Vuelta tune-up in Burgos but are difficult to put up at such short odds given that only a few seconds may separate the top teams and the weather forecast includes the odd shower. UAE Team Emirates look better value, so on price, let’s go for them at small stakes in the Vuelta opener.

Stage 1 Bets

UAE Team Emirates 0.5pts win @14/1

Posted 08:17 BST Fri 25th Aug 2023

Prices to win the stage (in brackets) are correct at the time of writing but are subject to change - find the best prices available on the Vuelta a España at Oddschecker

[Vuelta a España stage profiles reproduced by kind permission of Ben Lowe at Veloviewer.com]

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