There don’t seem to be many opportunities for the sprinters in this Vuelta, but the fifth stage is. There aren’t any official climbs on the 167.3 kilometres course between Rota and Alcala de Guadaira. A small group of escapees will get in the spotlight today. Is this a day for Kris Boeckmans?

“It’s true that this is one of the few chances for a sprint," he said. "The last 750 metres are uphill, a finish that’s comparable to the one of GP Cerami according to what I’ve heard. The advantage for our team is that the teams of Sagan, Degenkolb, Bouhanni and GC leader Chaves will take the responsibility and that we can save our energy. Tosh Van der Sande and Jasper De Buyst will try to lead me to the sprint in the best possible position. On Monday I had cramps and yesterday the finish wasn’t made for sprinters, so it wasn’t useful to insist, but today we go for it!”