Ruta del Sol 2022 – GC Preview

Stage 1

A lumby start in to a recreation of a finish in 2020 in Iznajar, where Serrano took his first WT win. With 3460 climbing meters, it will be a hard uphill sprint in Iznajar.

Stage 2

The second stage will be one of the toughest as we see a very steep climb in Alcalá la Real. It will not be the same finish as in 2021 with a lot of cobbles. The finish will come sooner, meaning only 100 meters of cobblestone.

Stage 3

Another hilly stage around 3000 climbing meters. It suits the breakaway perfectly with plenty of climbs in the opening half, but it is one of the few chances for the teams with a sprinter too.

Stage 4

It starts with the hardest climb of the entire race. I think it is a mistake to put it this early. However, it could create a very open race or a strong breakaway. The most likely might be the sprinters to get organized again and chase the entire stage.

Stage 5

The race ends with an uphill sprint. Another very hard start should see the early break being established or a high pace in the peloton to keep them intact.

Weather

The weather seems to favor the riders. Almost no wind and high temperatures.

Contenders

Covi took an important win for himself a few days ago. His first ever. With uphill sprints on the menu, it is time to see if he can compete with the best riders in the world in this sort of terrain.

Rodriguez might be the new man to watch out for. I feel like we see a new one every year, who just dominates. He was very impressive in Valencianna but now it is time to see if he has the punch to fight for the GC here.

Yates is normally not the strongest in February and I doubt he will be stronger this year. I think he can take a stage win, but I doubt he will be in shape to take the stage win.

Bahrain – Victorious bring a good squad. Landa is normally very good early on, but I do not think the parcours suit him too well. Haig had a good start to his season in both 2021 and 2020 but I am not sure where he is within the team hierarchy. Poels too is a good season starter and probably more suited for uphill finishes. I hope they use the width of their squad to their advantage.

Woods is the name that comes to mind when speaking of uphill finishes. I think he is the man to beat. He is strong early in the season, but the team supporting him is not the best. He will have in-form Simon Clarke at his disposal, which could be key. Will he suffer on the 100 meters of cobbles on stage 2? That is the big question.

Cosnefroy is another rider, who I think will do very well here. He is very quick in a sprint. There are no difficult mountains close to the finish line and his result at Grand Prix Cycliste de Marseille La Marseillaise is comforting, given he had Covid in the pre-season.

Lutsenko just did a massive ride in Spain. He is the king of February. The finishes do not suit him too much, I think there will be faster guys in the sprint. He will however be a hard man to drop.

Who will win?

Benoit Cosnefroy. I think AG2R have a very strong team for this race. He is a good uphill finisher and I think he will win the overall.