Let's All Play! The 2025 AAVC Vuelta a España Game!
Laurens De Jong
Let's all play!
It is time to play the 2025 AAVC Vuelta a España game. The Vuelta, the race that started the "my Grand Tour is harder than yours" arms race. This year: no less than ten summit finishes. I count maybe two sprint stages. This is all about getting up mountains. We won't even venture into the hills of Andalusia, where we could expect some echelon actions. No, just up mountains.
And a team time trial!
And the race starts in Italy.
I've been encouraged not to say this, but: we must all play the 2025 AAVC Vuelta a España Game. Or at least sign up to get the award* winning race reports.
Never played before? TL;DR? Go to the entry form HERE and pick your 18 riders for this year's Vuelta a España game. If you're concerned about rules, you can find them HERE. Register as soon as possible, preferably before the race starts on Saturday, August 23. But many of you know that if you're demonstrably honest, I will let you play even if you're late. If you're late and I find your starting list questionable, then I will ask those questions.
To all the new recruits, and everyone who hasn’t played in the past because they thought you have to be an expert: and to all our friends outside the Ann Arbor Velo Club: just give this game a go. Read the links below and pick 18 riders. Cycling is a team sport, playing this game is a team sport. We all enjoy the outcome, regardless of who wins. The more teams we have, the more we get to follow riders that otherwise would go unnoticed.
Helpful links and tips.
Startlist on Pro Cyclist Stats (it’s what I use to create the registration form): https://www.procyclingstats.com/race/vuelta-a-espana/2025/
PCS also uses their own ranking to break down the GC contenders, sprinters, other experts. It can be misleading because past success may not indicate that a rider is peaking for the Giro. Use this as a general guide to start selecting your riders:
https://www.procyclingstats.com/race/vuelta-a-espana/2025/startlist/top-gc-riders
https://www.procyclingstats.com/race/vuelta-a-espana/2025/startlist/sprinters
https://www.procyclingstats.com/race/vuelta-a-espana/2025/startlist/tt-specialists
But I would be careful to pick too many sprinters, and leave the time trial specialists at home. There's only one individual time trial, and that is four days before the end. Too late to make a difference.
Cycling Stages lists 16 contenders for the overall victory. That's almost an entire team for our game — but if you pick these 16 and two others, I don't think you'll win. But go ahead, take a look: https://www.cyclingstage.com/vuelta-2025-favourites/contenders-spain-2025/
Cyclist lists their 15 favorites, with a lot of background to make your informed decision: https://www.cyclist.co.uk/in-depth/vuelta-a-espana-2025-gc-form-guide
IDL (In De Leiderstrui) has previews for each of the major classifications:
Over on YouTube, Lanterne Rouge does their two-hour preview: https://youtu.be/vfcllmZqPms
My thought is that if you can't think of 18 riders, make sure you play the game to learn more about pro cycling. Let's all play!
Enter your 18 riders using the Google Form HERE as soon as possible.
¡Viva la Vuelta!
-laurens
* No actual award has ever been given.