Vuelta a Espana: The potential for an epic

One look at the provisional start list for this years Vuelta, starting in just a week and a half's time and you cannot help but get excited for the potential for the three week race. Aside from perhaps Vincenzo Nibali, an injured Alberto Contador and a self-retired from Grand Tours Bradley Wiggins, we've everyone we could want lining up determined to win the thing.

Chris Froome and Andrew Talansky, both of whom had their Tour dreams derailed by crashes, will line up. Also, Nairo Quintana who having won the Giro and sat out the Tour will be targeting his second Grand Tour of the season. Defending champion Chris Horner is back, Alejandro Valverde is there (presumably to help Quintana), Thibaut Pinot, fresh off his Tour podium, will race, along with Cadel Evans who skipped the Tour presumably to target the Vuelta.

And the list goes on: Ryder Hesjedal, Dan Martin (Giro redemption?), Fabio Aru (young Giro star), Waren Barguil (another French prodigy and winner of a Vuleta stage in 2013), Carlos Bentancur, Laurens Ten Dam, Bauke Mollema and the Yates brothers, Simon and Adam.

Beyond that there's Mark Cavendish, Peter Sagan and Nacer Bouhanni for the sprints along with Fabian Cancellara and Philippe Gilbert for various other stages.

The prospect is mouth watering.

How everyone's form is will be fascinating to see, either those coming off the back of the Tour, or those having crashed out of the Tour, or indeed those who skipped the Tour. The Tours loss when Froome, Talansky and Cavendish crashed out was the Vuelta's gain.

Nairo Quintana must go in as the favorite given his ride in the Giro and the time he's had to exclusively prepare for this race, but someone like Chris Froome will be determined to make up for his lost Tour de France.

The whole thing starts on Saturday 23 August with a team-time-trial and all eyes on the Garmin team as they look to avoid the disaster that befell them at the team-time-trial that started this years Giro. If they can get Dan Martin around this time the Irishman has got to be contender for a top ten finish...though so too are Hesjedal and Talansky.

So just when you thought post-tour withdrawal was reaching fever pitch, this race is about to come along and excite us all. It ought to be spectacular...let's hope no crashes get in the way.