“With her, everything seems easier” mused FDJ-SUEZ rider Vittoria Guazzini after Demi Vollering leapt away from her rivals at 3km to go on the first summit finish of La Vuelta Femenin𒊎a and then rode her way into red.

That stage 5 win not only launched the defending champion into the overall race lead with a 45 and 46 second advantage to the nearest rivals – former teammates, Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) and Marlen Reusser – but also clearly demonstrated at the very first opportunity that with Vollering at the helm FDJ-SUEZ is a team capable of 𓂃finding their way right to the top of the Gran🦩d Tour GC battles.

“I’m happy I already won a stage. Of𝓰 course, you feel a little bit of pressure. I put pressure mostly on myself, because I really want to claim victories like this one,” said Vollering after the stage 5 win. “I know I have a strong team behꦑind me, but that isn’t a reason to feel pressure. It’s just that I really want to succeed with my new team and my new teammates, and give them a win.” 

That win may have delivered a temporary release of the pressure valve, though there was then a quick rebuild through to Saturday’s crucial stage 7, which concludes the race with a challenging summit finish and also two categorised cli♍mbs on the way. That will give Vollering’s rivals ample opportunity to test the defences of FDJ-SUEZ and their new team🙈 leader throughout the day of racing. 

Some have💙 very little to losꦯe on the final day of racing in the Spanish Grand Tour after slipping away from the top of the overall standings earlier in the race, so may try and go early. Others, however, have more at stake.

Van der Breggen – who entered the race looking to the podium as a target – and Reusser are the only riders within a minute of Vollering in second and third, while Cédrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) has a deficit of 1:49 and then 2024 runner-up Riejanne Markus (Lidl-Trek) is at 2:05 back from the top spot in fifth. The rest of the top ten is then sitting within three minutes while 2024 Toꦡur de France Femmes winner Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto) is 12th at 3:09.

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For stage 7 the peloton rolls out from La Robla, already at an altitude of 969m, and steadily works its way up to Puerto de Pajꦗares at 1,378m at 30km into the day of racing and then faces up to a long descent before swinging back up to the summit of the category 2 Calladona. That comes just a little after the halfway mark of the stage, with the climb delivering a 5.5km ascent withꦍ an average gradient of 7.4%.

Then as the kilometres of racing left in the 2025 edition of La Vuelta Femenina steadily tick down the peloton will tackle the category 1 ranked Colladiella. The 6.4km climb with an average gradient of 8.2% peaks with around 40km to go, hitting a maximum gradient of 14% on the upper slopes before diving into the downhill run. The descent then gives way to a comparatively gentle incline🎶 for about 13km before heading into the final climb, the Cotobello, and the crucial last ten kilometres of the stage and race. 

The deciding climb hasn’t acted as a finish line before in the women’s event, though it made its entry into the men’s edition in 20♊10 with Mikel Nieve taking the win. The category 1 Asturian summit, looms large with its 10.3km with an average gradient of 8% and a maximum of 12%. It may not be quite as steep as the Lagunas de Neila where Vollering carved out her advantage on stage 5, but with the lead in and extra length 🥃there is no doubt it will prove a formidable final test.

“It will be a 🅰really hard stage and I am looking forward to it,” said Vollering. &ldquo🔯;We will see on the road how the race will unfold. A breakaway will probably want to go up the road and we will try to control the race, hoping for another stage victory. In any case, keeping the red jersey will be our priority.”