Trentin can step out of Kittel's shadow at La Vuelta

Stage two: Nimes to Grand Narbonne
Starts 11.25am Sunday, Live on Eurosport 1 from 2pm

On a race famed for its mountain finishes, stage two of the Vuelta a Espana is a rather sedate affair.

Starting in the French city of Nimes, the peloton travel 203.4km along a pan-flat course to Grand Narbonne where it is likely that the sprinters will contest the finish.

Given the brutal nature of the Vuelta route, the pure speedsters are in short supply. The likes of Mark Cavendish, Marcel Kittel and Fernando Gaviria are all absent leaving a stage market headed by John Degenkolb, who last won a Grand Tour stage in 2015.

Italian Matteo Trentin usually sacrifices his own chances for that of Kittel in the sprints but with the German absent, he gets the chance to ride for himself at the Vuelta.

Trentin has shown in the past he has the ability in such circumstances with two stage wins at the Tour de France and one at the Giro d'Italia, so at 5-1 could be the each-way play.

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