1973 Vuelta a España to win the 1973 Giro d'Italia and became the first cyclist to win the Vuelta-Giro double. Merckx also won the points classification and José Luis Abilleira won the mountains classification. With Merckx finishing first, Ocaña second and Thévenet third the podium of the 1973 Vuelta contained one previous winner and two future winners of the Tour de France making it one of the best podiums in the history of the race, according to the official race website. Gerben Karstens won 4 stages in this Vuelta A total of eight teams were invited to participate in the 1973 Vuelta a España.
Points classification in the Vuelta a España stage and the rider with the most points wears the jersey. This system unlike the Tour de France & the Giro d'Italia, gives equal amount of points in the mountains compared to the flats, this paired with the high number of summit finishes at the Vuelta means there’s a correlation between the overall classification and the points jersey. A good example from 2012 when sprinter John Degenkolb won five stages but only finished fourth in the points competition with Alejandro Valverde well ahead. Points classification in the Vuelta a España The points classification in the Vuelta a España is a