Vuelta a España 2022 stage 13 preview - A sprint chance before weekend of mountains

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Stage 13: Ronda - Montilla

Date: Friday, September 2, 2022

Distance: 168.4km

Stage timing: 13:15-17:30 CET

Stage type: Flat

The 168.4km from Ronda to Montilla cut a jagged profile, but this isn't a stage where the inclines will become steep enough to really split out the climbers from the fast men.

Starting in Ronda, the stage rolls straight into a 10km false flat before a long and fast descent toward Campillos. That gives way to gentle undulations all the way to Montilla. The early climb and descent will certainly lend themselves to a breakaway, but with teams hungry for a mass sprint we'll expect to see the peloton drawn together before the uphill finish in Montilla.

The finish sits atop a slow drag that takes in 130m of elevation over 6km, finishing at 370m of elevation. A HC climb this is not but with a long false flat we can expect some bold long-range attacks. However, big teams like Alpecin–Deceuninck will be targeting a sprint win here and so we'll be keeping our eyes on Tim Merlier plus stage 11 winner Kaden Groves (BikeExchange-Jayco) and second-placed Danny van Poppel (Bora-Hansgrohe).