Preview: What you need to know about stage 12 of the 2022 Vuelta a España
Preview: What you need to know about stage 12 of the 2022 Vuelta a España
Date: Thursday September 1
Start: Salobreña
Finish: Peñas Blancas. Estepona
Distance: 192.7 km
On stage 12 the riders will cross the province of Malaga from one end to the other in what is an almost entirely flat day … until the final climb. The Peñas Blancas ascent is 19 km long (6.7% average) and “a very tough finale that may make important changes to the general classification,” according to the Vuelta’s technical director, Fernando Escartín.
Will those trailing in Remco Evenepoel’s wake waste little time in testing how he copes having lost a key lieutenant in Julian Alaphilippe? Will the Belgian blow them all away again in another show of strength? This Vuelta looks primed to keep hotting up.
Who’s it for: Probably the GC contenders, unless they really want the break to have it.
