Ineos Grenadiers have announced their outstanding line-up for the Vuelta a España 2021.
The British WorldTour squad are taking some of the strongest Grand Tour riders in the world to Spain, as the final Grand Tour of the season gets underway on Saturday (August 14).
Egan Bernal, Adam Yates and Richard Carapaz are the three biggest contenders lining up for Ineos as the race starts in Burgos.
But the other exciting announcement from the team is that rising superstar Tom Pidcock will be racing his first Grand Tour, just weeks after winning Olympic gold in the mountain bike event in Tokyo.
Bernal and Adam Yates are most likely to lead the team, as Bernal comes fresh from his overall victory in the 2021 Giro d’Italia in spring and will be hoping to complete the full set of Grand Tour wins in Spain.
Yates on the other hand, a new signing for Ineos this year, has been relatively quiet for much of the summer, as he targeted a medal in the Olympic Games road race, where he eventually finished ninth.
But Ecuadorian star Carapaz could also fight for the red jersey, having finished third in the Tour de France this year and then taking a huge victory to win gold in the Olympic road race.
Pidcock will be taking on a support role as he learns the ropes of three-week racing, as 2021 is his debut season racing at WorldTour level.
>>> Vuelta a España 2021 start list
The Yorkshireman already has one pro win to his name, after he won Brabantsje Pijl in spring, so he may also target a stage victory in the Vuelta.
The rest of the Ineos team is a familiar cast of ultra-strong support riders - Pavel Sivakov, Dylan Van Baarle, Jhonatan Narvaez and Salvatore Puccio.
Ineos Grenadiers squad for the Vuelta a España 2021
Egan Bernal (Col)
Adam Yates (GBr)
Richard Carapaz (Ecu)
Tom Pidcock (GBr)
Pavel Sivakov (Rus)
Dylan Van Baarle (Ned)
Jhonatan Narvaez (Ecu)
Salvatore Puccio (Ita)
