Vuelta a España stage 18 preview - Race of truth in Valladolid

Key Information

• Date: Thursday, 11 September
• First Start: 14:12 (CET)
• Last Finish: 17:30 (CET)
• Stage type: Individual time trial
• Stage length: 12.2km
• Profile: flat

The full list with start times for all riders can be found here.

The last Vuelta stage hosted in Valladolid was an individual time trial in the 2023 edition of the race, where the then world champion Filippo Ganna beat Remco Evenepoel to the post.

Valladolid has been prevalent over the years, hosting the finish of the first ever stage in the race’s history, and it has in total hosted 35 stage starts, nine of which were in the form of individual time trials.

Stage 18 is also quite late for a first individual time trial at a Grand Tour, but that makes things all the more intriguing.

The route was initally due to be 27km but it is now just 12.2km in length, with very little climbing, which will suit the specialists, and could see some of the climbing-focused GC riders struggle.

There is a small kicker around a third of the way through, which could disrupt the rhythm of some, but there will be plenty of fast sections where the riders motor along. 

The final kilometres aren’t too technical, meaning that the riders should be able to push to their limit of watts right until the finish line, maximising their effort.

UPDATE: The route for stage 18's individual time trial has been reduced to 12.2km amid security concerns.

Stage 17 saw a stalemate between the GC contenders for the most part due to windswept conditions. In the dash to the line, Jonas Vingegaard’s (Visma | Lease a Bike) punch gained him two seconds over João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG).

Both have made statements in time trials over the years, both are accomplished in the discipline, but it remains to be seen who will take the advantage tomorrow. It feels essential for Almeida to finish ahead of Vingegaard if he is to make a statement that he remains firmly in the fight for red. 

Vingegaard, however, has delivered some of the best performances in time trials in recent times and knows that he could take a big step towards securing the red jersey with an emphatic performance on Thursday. It’s finely poised and it’s hard to call, but that’s why it’s known as the race of truth. It looks set to be a fascinating battle among the remaining GC riders, as beyond Vingegaard and Almeida, nobody stands out as head and shoulders above the rest in the discipline.

It looks set to be a fascinating battle amongst the remaining GC riders, as beyond Vingegaard and Almeida, nobody stands head and shoulders above the rest in the discipline. However, at this stage of a Grand Tour, the form book in the discipline often goes out of the window, and those with the better legs often can take advantage.

Tom Pidcock (Q36.5) is a former junior world champion in the discipline, having picked up the rainbow bands in Bergen, Norway in 2017. Pidcock looked strong in the finale of stage 17, slightly increasing his advantage in third ahead of this crucial effort. Jai Hindley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) could be aiming to try and close the gap on Pidcock in this effort, and although not renowned for his ability in the discipline, the Australian has been handy in the past, and like Pidcock looks well up for the fight. 

It will be interesting to see if any changes occur between Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), Felix Gall (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), and Matthew Riccitello (Israel-Premier Tech), the trio separated by 1:08 from fifth to seventh, respectively. Meanwhile, Matteo Jorgenson (Visma | Lease a Bike) in 10th, could be one of the strongest performers among the current top 10.

Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) has had a relatively anonymous Vuelta for his standards, returning to racing after crashing and abandoning on the opening stage of the Tour de France in July.

However, if there’s one stage where Ganna is likely to make his mark, it was always going to be the individual time trial. The two-time world champion in the discipline was the winner the last time Valladolid hosted an individual time trial at the Vuelta back in 2023, beating Remco Evenepoel to victory on a not too dissimilar course.

Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ) won the last individual time trial at the Vuelta, his first success at a Grand Tour, in Madrid on the final stage twelve months ago. The former European champion featured in a couple of breakaways in the second week, indicating positive signs ahead of what is a big objective for the Swiss.

Daan Hoole (Lidl-Trek) claimed his first Grand Tour stage win at the Giro d’Italia in May in the individual time trial on stage 10. The Dutch champion will have an advantage over most with his big, powerful frame on this fast course.

Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) already has two stage wins from breakaways at this race, but the Australian is strong in the time trial, having won twice in the discipline as a professional. With his red-hot form, he can’t be counted out if some of the specialists aren’t at their best. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) is also a strong time trial rider, but it remains to be seen what the Spaniard's intentions are for Thursday.

Alec Segaert (Lotto) has gone under the radar slightly at this Vuelta, but the 22-year-old Belgian was climbing well in breakaways in the second week, and is a three-time European champion in the discipline at the under-23 level.

Other strong time triallists who could set an early benchmark include Bruno Armirail (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Magnus Sheffield (Ineos), Maximilian Schachmann (Soudal-QuickStep), Mikkel Bjerg and Felix Großschartner (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Matteo Sobrero (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Antonio Tiberi (Bahrain-Victorious), Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek), and Remi Cavagna (Groupama-FDJ).

Vuelta a España stage 18 favourites

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Filippo Ganna
⭐️⭐️ Jay Vine, Jonas Vingegaard, João Almeida, Alec Segaert, Daan Hoole
⭐️ Magnus Sheffield, Juan Ayuso, Stefan Küng, Bruno Armirail, Mikkel Bjerg

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