The Ruta del Sol 2018, AKA the Vuelta a Andalucia, will see the return of Chris Froome to racing for the first time in 2018 and the first time since his controversial Salbutamol case came to light.
Here's everything you'll want to know about the Ruta del Sol;
Stage One, Feb. 14th - Mijas -> Granada
197.6km long, six classified climbs and a second-category climb just 9km in. Riders are definitely being thrown in the deep end here, with a relatively nasty start to the race. Although it will undoubtedly be a bunch sprint at the end, any pure out-and-out sprinters will be dropped quite easy on, and this will be a fight between the domestiques for the Blue leader's jersey.
Stage Two, Feb. 15th - Otura -> Alto de Allandas
Chris Froome will have some happy memories of the Alto de Allandas, where his attacks on the climb set up his victory in the Ruta del Sol 2015. This will be the first time that the climb has featured in the Ruta del Sol since that 2015 race, and the 5.6km stretch features gradients of up to 21% and an average of 12% - and it will be interesting to see who can keep up with Froome on the climbs, especially with Wout Poels and David de la Cruz racing alongside Froome in Team Sky jerseys.
Stage Three, Feb. 16th -> Mancha Real - Herrara
A day for the sprinters, and the only flat stage (apart from the Stage 5 time-trial) in this year's Ruta del Sol. This will probably be seen as a rest day for most, but I'm sure some unheard of sprinters will want to get their names floating out into the mix.
Stage Four, Feb. 17th - Sevilla -> Alcalá de los Gazules
I reckon this will be a day for a breakaway stage win, and with two summits featuring double-digit gradients, it will be interesting to see who'll go all-out for the win. I'd love to see AG2R La Mondiale repeating their very impressive, attacking tactics of the 2017 Tour de France, but with a lot of big names and future stars in the race, this stage really could be for anyone.
Stage Five, Feb. 18th - Barbate
Barbate plays host to a relatively short, 14km long time-trial to finish the Ruta del Sol, and I'm sure all eyes will be on Froome for this stage - if he doesn't already have the Blue Jersey over his shoulders by Stage Five, then he'll be fighting to get it here. The profile seems quite flat, but with almost 200m of climbing over such a short distance, the stage provides difficult, technical descent before the finish.
My Prediction;
Chris Froome will win with ease. Jakob Fuglsang of Astana and Steven Kruikswijk of Lotto-NL Jumbo will probably give him a good run for his money though, and will both definitely feature in the top 5, and possibly in the top 3. Mikel Landa will also be one to watch, but with Alejandro Valverde winning five of the last six Ruta del Sols, he might not get his chance at fighting for the GC.
Check out the Start list here!
Feel free to give me your thoughts!