The 2014 Vuelta a España will include some big names, with the likes of Contador, Froome, Uran and Quintana all involved. But if you look past the most recognized racers, you'll find an abundance of talent amongst the younger contenders, whether they're winning stages or have the ambition to win it.

The most distinguished young rider is of course Cannondale's Peter Sagan. The Slovak had a tough time in the Tour De France earlier in the year, despite winning the Maillot Vert for the third consecutive year. Sagan has an imposing record nonetheless; With four stages in the Tour De France, coming first in the points classification of the Tour Of California three times and various other points and sprint classification jersey's throughout races such as the Tour De Suiss and Tour De Pologne, the Cannondale man is a force to be reckoned with. Sagan will be leading out his team alongside De Marchi and Caruso, in an effort to add to his three previous stage wins at the Vuelta.  This year's tour of Spain will be Sagan's last tour with Cannondale, who he has raced with since 2010, before joining Tinkoff-Saxo in time for next season. Although this year's edition features eight summit finishes, Sagan will still have a chance to shine in the sporadic flat finishes. 

Belkin will be backing the ambitions of Dutch rider, Wilco Kelderman. Kelderman has only featured in one Grand Tour which was the Giro d'Italia earlier this year where he finished an impressive 17th position in the general classification standings. The Dutchman did in fact earn many plaudits as he glided through the alluring Italian countryside.Davide Cassani, the Italian head coach, said of the current crop of young talent: “They need time. Riders like Philippe Gilbert or Vincenzo Nibali needed a few years to get to the top. Or look at Fabian Cancellara. He needed time to win Flanders and Roubaix. When he got there, he was nearly unbeatable. These guys shouldn’t try to get there in a hurry but at their own pace. You got to build your base unless your name is Peter Sagan and you’re a phenomenon. Kelderman? He’s the youngest of the three, at 22, and has less experience but already placed well in the Giro last year.” 

Another highly-rated rider is Rohan Dennis. The Australian recently won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, before making a rare mid-summer move to BMC Racing from Garmin-Sharp. The battle for the red jersey will be BMC's main focus, with Cadel Evans inevitably in the spotlight, but Dennis will be crucial too. The 24 year old's natural strong point is time trials, so the two individual and one team time trial will appeal very much. Dennis has been very open about how much he has progressed since joining the Swiss team. "Usually in races, I would get dropped in the last three kilometres of the final climb and that was a big goal of mine, to win a mountaintop race...it was something I was unable to do last year, so that was a major goal for me. So to be able to do that against guys like Bradley Wiggins shows I've taken another step forward," Dennis said after winning an impressive mountain stage in the Tour of California. 

Then of course there are the likes of Thibaut Pinot, who had an unbelievable Tour De France, claiming the young rider's jersey, and finishing third in the overall classification. The FDJ rider has only featured in the Vuelta once, that being last year where he finished seventh. Pinot has also won the white young rider jersey twice in the Bayern - Rundfahrt race. Tipped to be one of the brightest talents to come out of professional cycling in the past decade, Pinot has the heavy weight of expectation resting on his shoulders, but the 24 year old has already proved that he has nerves of steel.