The official presentation is on January 9 in Santiago de Compostela but details of the route for the Vuelta a Espana continue to emerge. The newest leaks are that the race will have summit finishes on the Col d’Aubisque and the Alto de Aitana.

Spanish newspaper AS reveals the details of the two stages which are likely to be decisive. The stage in the Pyrenees can be regarded as the queen stage of the Spanish race. It starts in the Navarran town of Urdax and finishes at the top of the Aubisque, a 17km climb, after passing the climbs of Burdinkurutzeta, Irati, Soudet and Marie Blanque. It will be the 14th stage, held on the third Saturday, and it will be the fifth time that a stage will finish in the French Pyrenees after Luz Ardiden in 1992 (Cubino) and 1995 (Jalabert); Cauterets in 2003 (Rasmussen) and Peyragudes in 2013 (Geniez).

The other confirmed mountaintop finish is on Alto de Aitana on the final Friday or Saturday of the race, just after the time trial from Jávea to Calpe. Those two stages are likely to decide the final winner. Klaus Moller (2001), Leonardo Piepoli (2004) and Damiano Cunego (2009) have won at the top of the 22km climb in Alicante.

The race is expected to have around ten summit finishes of which seven are already known: Mirador de Ézaro (2nd stage), San Andrés de Teixido (3rd), La Camperona (8th), Naranco (9th), Lagos de Covadonga (10th), Aubisque (14th) and Aitana (20th?). Three are still missing. There will be two time trial, the opening team time trial of 28 kilometers and individual test between Javea and Calpe (19th?).