Stage 19: La Bañeza to Íscar
Distance: 177.5km
Stage type: Flat
The mountains are done and the sprinters who remain in the Vuelta a España will be breathing a sigh of relief as they line up in La Bañeza, and hoping the pressure of finishing within the time cut in the last two mountainous stages hasn't taken the speed out of their legs.
It not completely without bumps in the profile of stage 19 – although they are very small ones at that – but after the last couple of stages it will probably feel as flat as a pancake.
It is the second-to-last opportunity for the fast finishers, so they hope to head into Íscar in a bunch, but it is not only climbs that can get in the way of that. The wind, should it appear, could set another obstacle in the way.
However, if the wind stays calm or the sprinters team keep it together regardless, it's a straight final run into the line at Íscar once once a big, right-hand bend is behind them at just over 2km to go.
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