2018 Vuelta a España Stage 8 Live Coverage
Welcome to our live coverage of Stage 8 of the 2018 Vuelta a España! Our live profile and commentary are below, followed by a preview of the technical aspects of the route.
Course Preview
The route of the Vuelta a España's 8th stage sets off in Linares to roll in northwesterly direction. Amounting to 195.1 kilometres the race finishes in Almadén on a gentle slope with a 7% kick just before the line.
In the 2015 Vuelta the route also moved through this part of Spain. The riders cut through Linares on their way to Cazorla, where an intriguing battle for the overall lead was played out by Esteban Chaves and Tom Dumoulin. The Colombian not only won the stage, he also took the red jersey from the Dutchman.
Now the route goes the other way and enters the Parque Natural Sierra de Cardeña y Montoro. In the Natural Park the riders tackle the Alto de Españares, a 3rd category KOM-climb of 10.3 kilometres with an average gradient of 3.6%. No downhill though, the route follows a gradual and rolling descent to the sweltering plains north of Córdoba.
Following a flat section of 10 kilometres, the finale begins 6 kilometres before the line with a 2.4 kilometres slope at 3.4%, while the last 2 kilometres are averaging 3.8% and also feature a 7% kick with 200 metres to go.
The first three riders on the line take time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while the intermediate sprint (at kilometre 123.6) comes with 3, 2 and 1 seconds.
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