The first summit finish of the 2025 Vuelta a España comes early, with a short but selective 160km stage from Alba to Limone Piemonte. While this isn’t the hardest of the race’s 10 summit finishes, the gradients will be enough to test the favourites and could shake up the general classification after just two days of racing. Jasper Philipsen’s red jersey from Novara is under immediate threat, and today’s finale is far more suited to the climbers and punchier all-rounders.
2025 Vuelta a España stage 2 details
Date: Sunday, 24th August
Distance: 160km
Start: Alba
Finish: Limone Piemonte
Start time: 13:35 CEST
Estimated finish: 17:21 CEST
Stage two begins in Alba, a town better known for Ferrero Rocher, Nutella, and white truffles than bike racing, but the peloton won’t linger long among its culinary treasures. The roads are flat through the opening half, with an intermediate sprint at Busca after 68.4km, but the profile gradually tilts upwards as the race heads south into the Maritime Alps.
The finale is dominated by the climb to Limone Piemonte, a ski resort perched high in the mountains. Officially classified as a category 2 ascent, it measures 10km at an average of 5%, but the road begins rising well before the marker, meaning the effort is longer and more taxing than the profile suggests. It’s not the steepest test of the race, but with fresh legs and high tempo, it will be selective. Expect a reduced group sprinting for the win rather than big solo attacks.
Contenders
Jonas Vingegaard will relish this finish. The Visma | Lease a Bike leader starts the Vuelta as the overall favourite and has a chance to assert himself immediately. UAE Team Emirates bring both João Almeida and Juan Ayuso, and while Almeida tends to excel on steadier gradients, Ayuso’s punch makes him the better option on this sort of climb. Jay Vine, a previous Vuelta stage winner, offers another card for UAE if the team opts to attack from range.
Giulio Ciccone is the home crowd’s best hope today. The Lidl-Trek rider thrives on short, testing climbs and will be eager to convert his form into a stage win – and possibly the maillot rojo. Tom Pidcock also looks well-matched to this finale. The Q36.5 rider has the explosiveness needed to win from a small group if the pace stays high.
Antonio Tiberi could make headlines here. The Bahrain Victorious rider has been building form all season and this sort of steady climb on home soil plays perfectly to his strengths. Expect Felix Gall, Mikel Landa, and David Gaudu to feature near the front too, though they may find it harder to match the accelerations if the tempo lifts inside the final kilometre. Riders like Jai Hindley, Giulio Pellizzari, and Egan Bernal have the kick to upset the favourites if the marking gets too cagey.
If the day unexpectedly opens up for a breakaway, riders such as Carlos Verona, Julien Bernard, Finn Fisher-Black, Bruno Armirail, Pablo Castrillo, Lorenzo Fortunato, and Valentin Paret-Peintre are all capable of making it stick on this terrain.
Prediction
Antonio Tiberi is our pick to win stage two and take the maillot rojo.
