Vuelta a España stage 21 preview: Sepp Kuss to be crowned in last dance for sprinters
Traditional end to race to play out on streets of Spanish capital city in what will be first US men's grand tour win in a decade.
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Stage 21 — Sunday, September 17
Hipódromo de la Zarzuela to Madrid
Distance: 101.1km (62.8 miles)
Profile: Flat stage
Sepp Kuss will make history when he crosses the finish line Sunday in the final stage of the 2023 Vuelta a España.
Kuss, 29, will become the first American to win the Spanish grand tour in a decade, and become just the fourth U.S. rider to officially win a three-week stage race, joining Greg LeMond, Andy Hampsten, and Chris Horner.
Kuss was joking that he sometimes struggles to hang onto the wheel in these so-called “parade” finales, but his Jumbo-Visma team will be chaperoning him all the way to the line.
The Vuelta is also a milestone for Jumbo-Visma, which will sweep the podium, with Kuss the winner, Jonas Vingegaard in second, and Primož Roglič in third.
The Vuelta also marks the “grand tour sweep,” a first in cycling history for a men’s team to win all three grand tour in one season.
Roglič won the Giro in May, Vingegaard swept to his second straight Tour title in July, and Kuss will the surprise win in Madrid on Sunday.
Beginning in the Hipódromo de la Zarzuela horse racing center, the final stage of the Vuelta a España is totally flat and based totally in and around Madrid. It includes eight finishing laps of a 5.8km circuit, and is almost certain to conclude in a bunch sprint.
It will be a processional stage for the race winner, although they will still have to be very vigilant to avoid crashes.
Last year, Juan Molano (UAE Team Emirates) won after continuing on his with leadout for former teammate Pascal Ackermann.
Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck) will be the big favorite, and will also win the points jersey.
Remco Evenepoel will win the King of the Mountains jersey, the first by a Belgian since 2019, and Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates), fourth overall, is the best young rider.
Schedule
Start time (17.19 CET, 11.19 a.m. EST, 8.19 a.m. WST), estimated finishing time (19.58 CET, 13.58 p.m. EST, 10.58 a.m. WST)
