Vuelta a España 2013: Vincenzo Nibali and Top Favourites After 1st Week

The 2013 Vuelta a España is now a week old, and although there is still a long time to go before the prizes will be handed out, the favourites are beginning to arrive at the top of the leaderboard.

The "Shark of Messina" Vincenzo Nibali has been at the top of the standings since last Monday; for the moment, he looks more than comfortable in the lead of the race.

While the previous few days have favoured the sprinters, Stage 8 is set to favour the better climbers in the field. Nibali and his Astana team will focus on sticking together as the bigger ascents of the tour begin to take their toll.

Who, then, are the favourites for the overall tour win after week one?

Vincenzo Nibali (Astana)

Experienced Italian Vincenzo Nibali has put himself in a great position after the first week of the tour, leading the field by three seconds from American Chris Horner.

Nibali will strive to simply maintain his advantage in the climbs of the next few days, knowing that he has stronger stages to come. It is all about tour management now for Nibali, and he needs to be sensible as the Vuelta heats up.

In Nibali's favour is his excellent Astana team. With Peñas Blancas—Paolo Tiralongo, Janez Brajkovic and Jakob Fuglsang are all there to help him keep his advantage over the coming days.

Alejandro Valverde (Movistar)

The next few days will be important to Valverde's challenge for the tour as a whole. The Spaniard is well suited to the coming stages—which feature steep climbs to the finish.

Valverde finished second overall in the 2012 Vuelta and has a real chance of going one better on this occasion, currently lying just 21 seconds off of the lead.

If Valverde can use the next three stages to close the gap ahead of Tuesday's rest day, he will be in a great position to push on for a win as the tour's tougher stages begin to mount up.

Rigoberto Urán (Sky)

Colombian rider Rigoberto Urán is currently seventh in the overall standings, 28 seconds off of the lead, but will be happy with his performance to date.

Urán has agreed to switch to the Omega Pharma-QuickStep team for the 2014 season, following former Sky teammate Mark Cavendish. Urán hopes to finish his Sky career with a positive result in the Vuelta.

Having finished third in the Giro d'Italia this year, Urán has shown that he can handle the pace over a full tour schedule. The beginning of the big climbs in the next few days will give a better indication of whether or not he will challenge for the overall tour.

Joaquim Rodríguez (Katusha)

It has not been a great week for Joaquim Rodríguez, who currently lies 53 seconds off of the lead in the general classification, having started the tour among the favourites for the overall crown.

In order to make up some ground on his rivals, Rodríguez will have to push to make up time wherever possible in the coming stages. The mountain stages will be his best chance for significant gains.

The 34-year-old finished in third place in last year's Vuelta and repeated that performance at this year's Tour de France, showing his fantastic pedigree over the long haul.

A good few days now could set him up for a real shot at the overall lead by the time the peloton enters Madrid on September 15.