It’s been an eventful few months in the world of cycling with the Tour de France and Super World Championships. However, the season takes another exciting twist with Vuelta a Espana — a race that promises to be grueling on competitors and potential bettors that don’t take our advice. Keep reading to get our expert picks on who wins La Vuelta, and cashes your ticket in the process.
- What: La Vuelta
- When: Saturday, August 6
- Where: Spain
2023 La Vuelta Preview
It’s quite a stacked competitors list at this year’s event. Perhaps that’s the best place to begin our preview of the 2023 La Vuelta. Top contenders in the field include defending champion Remco Evenepoel, three-time Vuelta winner Primož Roglič, and Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard. These names have the top odds to win, per the best betting sites for sports. The odds are as follows:
| Rider |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jonas Vingegaard | +125 | +125 | +125 |
| Primoz Roglic | +225 | +225 | +225 |
| Remco Evenepoel | +350 | +350 | +350 |
| Juan Ayuso | +700 | +700 | +700 |
| Geraint Thomas | +1800 | +1800 | +1800 |
| Enric Mas Nicolau | +1800 | +1800 | +1800 |
Get ready, this race is going to be hilly. Really hilly, in fact. Beginning in Barcelona, this race will take riders north, through much of the country’s mountainscape. From Barcelona, riders head up to the Pyrenees followed by Andorra before brutal climbs down the stretch including the Tourmalet and the Angliru. Being as this is a Grand Tour, there will be the usual 21 stages between those cities and only two rest days. Here are a few things to look out for in regard to the route.
The very first mountain stage comes in early on Stage 3 in Arsinal. This is the point in the race that begins greening up into Andorra. In total, we’re looking at nine summit finishes at this year’s La Vuelta. The one to look out is stage 13's Col du Tourmalet finale promises to be a spectacle. This marks the third time in two months the Tourmalet finds its way into an event. Riders will be asked to climb more than 4,000m with this one.
We should mention there’s not much sprinting in this race. Only stages 7, 12, and 19 feature sprints. So we wouldn’t put much stock into sprinter-based riders. This event is won and lost by those hilly climbs so bet accordingly. Speaking of which, let’s get into our betting picks below.
Who To Bet To Win La Vuelta
Alright, you can never be too quite sure when it comes to cycling. Bet on at least two different riders is almost always the play in a sport this unpredictable. That’s what we’re doing with our picks to win La Vuelta. Here’s who is getting our money:
“Safe” Betting Pick
This category is reserved exclusively for Vingegaard and Roglic. Each has battled each other neck and neck this whole season, with one Grand Tour win a piece for them. The current betting odds really only afford you the chance to bet on one to remain comfortably profitable. So who’s the better choice?
To us, Roglic is the pick to make. You just have to put a high premium on his three previous victories here. If not for a devastating crash on the 16th stage a year ago, the Solevnian might have four wins to his name too. That’s a track record you typically want to align yourself with when betting.
Alternative Betting Pick
It feels weird calling Evenepoel an alternate bet. We mean, he’s the reigning champion of this event. But it seems like every rider is an afterthought when Proglic and Vingegaard are in the picture.
Still, Evenepoel flies under the radar even more because he hasn’t finished a Grand Tour event this season. First, he tested positive for COVID in Italy then he skipped France altogether. His betting odds would likely be shorter if he had finished either one. But hey, we like the betting value he provides now so we’ll gladly take it.
How To Watch La Vuelta?
Broadcasters will be different throughout the world. However, we’re talking to our American readers with this one. The exclusive place to watch La Vuelta is NBC if inside the United States.
More specifically, on NBC’s Peacock app. The streaming service will live air every single stage of the race, plus provide ancillary coverage before and after events. There will also be simulcast on the traditional TV channels, but that’ll differ by the day. Peacock is the simplest place to get EVERYTHING in one spot.
Of course, live feeds will typically sit in the wee hours and/or morning time. There’s a big time-zone difference between the United States and Europe, but cycling fans and bettors are used to this.
How To Bet On La Vuelta?
La Vuelta is the third and final Grand Tour of the 2023 season. If you don’t bet on La Vuelta, you’ll have to wait a whole nine months for another opportunity to bet on a Grand Tour. One of the sportsbooks featured below can help you take your chance now. Per our latest sportsbook reviews, any one of these sites will offer the full gamut of odds on the event, plus others left in the 2023 campaign.
Having a deep sportsbook isn’t the only reason we’re recommending these bookmakers. The other is because these sites offer lucrative sign-up bonuses to first-time players. Bonuses hover between the $500 to $2500 range — a hefty sum of free money that can be used to gamble freely. Our favorite offers are listed below.
