La Vuelta 2024:- Stage 8:Úbeda – Cazorla, 158.7km ***Spoilers***

Úbeda – Cazorla, 158.7km

Saturday 24th August

Start Time: 12-30BST.

Stage 8 is a real bread-and-butter day for Vuelta breakaways. Again a race in the Iberian oven, this one adding up to 158.7 kilometres. The mountains of Jaén will be the star of a rugged stage. The riders tackle approximately 2,700 metres of climbing. The Mirador de las Palomas mountain pass will be the day’s biggest challenge, while the finish lies uphill in the Sierra de Cazorla after a 4.2 kilometres toil at 8.2%. The 2015 Vuelta saw a similar finale. Esteban Chaves attacked from the GC group with 2 kilometres to go and he held off Dan Martin and Tom Dumoulin to take both the red jersey and the stage win.

Profile

Map.

The Climbs.

Final Kilometres.

With 9 kilometres to go, the riders descend to the base of the final climb. It’s a 4.8 kilometres drag at 7.1%, but that statistic is misleading. The first kilometre goes up at 17.3% and the second at 3.4%. Then it’s back up to the double-digit gradient. After that, the gradient levels out again before ramping up to 13.5% in the final 800 metres.

What to Expect.

To me, this stage doesn't really shout GC, but does look extremely promising for a climber who has lost time and is perhaps looking to get back into that battle. Also expect good puncheurs to get into the mix.

Úbeda

Úbeda has already hosted a La Vuelta stage departure once before, in 2011.

34,062 inhabitants.

Úbeda is synonymous with heritage. This is due to the fact that this Jaén locality is the second city in Europe to have the highest concentration of monuments. Declared, along with Baeza, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is one of the best examples of the Spanish Renaissance style and is surrounded by Jaén’s characteristic olive trees. Úbeda has ample cycling experience after hosting the Spanish Championships in 2020 and being named the headquarters for the new Clásica Jaén Paraíso Interior race since 2022.

Ajo harina

Ajo harina is a traditional Spanish dish originating from Jaén. Although there are many variations, the simplest recipe for the dish calls for a combination of potatoes, flour, garlic, bell peppers, paprika, olive oil, salt, and black pepper. The potatoes are peeled, sliced, and fried in olive oil with bell pepper strips. The mixture is covered with water. Next, mashed garlic, paprika, flour, salt, and pepper are all added into the pan. The dish is cooked until the potatoes become soft, and ajo harina is then served immediately, while still hot.

Cazorla

Cazorla has already hosted a La Vuelta finish-line once before.

7,183 inhabitants.

Cazorla is an entry point to the Cazorla, Segura and Las Villas Mountain Ranges Natural Park. This park is Spain’s largest Protected Natural Area and the second-largest in Europe. The municipality and its surroundings are a paradise for nature lovers, near the source of one of the Iberian Peninsula’s most important rivers: the Guadalquivir River.

Morcilla blanca de Jaén

As the name suggests, morcilla blanca de Jaén is a Spanish sausage originating from the Jaén province in southern Spain. The sausage is typically made with a combination of pork head meat, meat from other animals, pork dewlap, salt, pimentón, eggs, white pepper, parsley, nutmeg, cinnamon, almonds, smashed garlic, and sherry wine.