Chris Froome (Team Sky) expects Alberto Contador (Trek-Segafredo) to attack on the high slopes of the Calar Alto on the Vuelta a España's stage 11 on Wednesday.
Froome accepted another red jersey after stage 10 and climbed off the podium for a press chat next to one of Spain’s biggest Jamón producers.
He nodded towards the Spaniard and three-time Vuelta winner, who is racing his last race before retirement, to try to claw back time in the overall classification tomorrow.
>>> Five talking points from stage 10 of the Vuelta a España
"I don't know tomorrow's climb at all, I'll have ask Alberto Contador about it," Froome said. "I think it's his training ground around there, so he knows the area really well.
"I imagine that with the finish being a high-mountaintop finish we'll see a very aggressive race towards the final. Certainly guys like Alberto will want to try to make up time on some of their rivals tomorrow. I imagine Alberto will be very aggressive tomorrow and trying to gain back time that he lost early in the race."
Watch: Vuelta a España stage 10 highlights
Contador suffered in the early days of the Vuelta, but found his kick again towards the end of the first week. It gives hope for those fans hoping to see Contador end his farewell tour on a high.
The 11th stage climbs the 13.2-kilometre Alto de Velefique at 1800 metres. The final 15.5-kilometre Calar Alto climb rises to 2120 metres to a finish by an observatory.
"There's a big possibility of rain for the final tomorrow again. Today it played a big part because of the final descent was a little wet, making it a little more dangerous and slippery," Froome said.
>>> Wet descent and pine needles on road thward Vincenzo Nibali's attack on Vuelta a España stage 10
"I wasn't prepared to take any risks today and just happy to go down easily with my team-mates. The tactic was to play it safe and protect our position and protect the position we are in. We are in the good position and we didn't want to jeopardise that.
"Tomorrow is definitely a much harder finish uphill finish and we could see a lot more aggressive final and more changes in the classification, for sure."
Froome leads the overall from Esteban Chaves (Orica-Scott) and Nicolas Roche (BMC Racing), who are tied for second place at 36 seconds back.
We rode and reviewed the Ouray, Parlee Cycles' first new bike model since facing bankruptcy
Forget distance covered, these are the key stats to note in your Strava Year in Sport
