Volta a Catalunya heads into its decisive weekend with the first of two hilly stages to determine the final outcome of the race. With Joaquin Rodriguez (Katusha) trailing race leader Daniel Martin (Garmin-Sharp) by just 14 seconds, the Spaniard will look for every opportunity to gain back time on the Irishman.
That first opportunity may present itself in today's penultimate affair. At 178,7km, it is a hilly and unpredictable affair that could be the scene of a sprint from a reduced bunch, success for a long-distance breakaway and attacks from the GC rivals.
The stage starts out in flat terrain, but the riders will have to turn on their climbing legs in the race's second half. With 77km, they hit the category 1 Prades climb (11km, 4.0%) which will do its fair share of damage on some tired legs towards the end of a hard week of racing. After a fast downhill, the day's final challenge, the 2nd category Lilla climb (6,1km 4,8%), presents itself, and it looks like the perfect launch pad for a final attack. The summit will be crested with 14,5km remaining, and then it is straight down to the finish in Valls where an ascending finishing straight awaits the riders.
You can follow the queen stage live here on Cyclingquotes.com starting at 15.15
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