1 in every 3 riders at the Vuelta a España will race it for the first time - Brennan, Nys and more
Cycling
61 out of the 184 riders taking on the Vuelta a España have not raced it before. Effectively, this means that every one in three riders are having their first experience in the Spanish Grand Tour - some of them, their first-ever experience in a three-week race.
This is not an abnormal statistic, although it showcases effectively how despite the high level in the World Tour peloton, selections for Grand Tours are often narrowed down to the team's best riders. At the Giro d'Italia there were 68 debutants, and at the Tour de France there were only 50 - pushing forward a continuous trend that at the Tour de France there is less room for experiment, and more pressure to deliver.
At the 2026 Vuelta, there is however an unusually low amount of debutants that are capable of fighting for the overall classification. At the Giro d'Italia Jonas Vingegaard was a clear example; whilst even at the Tour de France the likes of Paul Seixas and Isaac del Toro were unavoidable debutants.
At the Vuelta there is very little room for the debutants to make a big impact in the fight for the Top10. Norwegians Tobias Johannessen and Jorgen Nordhagen are effectively the only two potential GC candidates; whilst the likes of Pablo Torres, Luke Tuckwell and Jakob Omrzel could surprise.
But the debutants can have an impact in the fight for stage wins, with Matthew Brennan being the clear favourite to acomplish this. He is backed by Wout Van Aert and, surprisingly, the Vuelta's oldest debutant: Christophe Laporte, who is 33 years old - as is Tudor's Roland Thalmann. The latter is also the oldest pro rider in this race to make his Grand Tour debut, having turned pro 11 years ago.
Other riders such as Iván Romeo, Thibau Nys, Jarno Widar, Georg Steinhauser and Axel Laurance could find themselves succceeding in what is their first experience at the Spanish Grand Tour.

Out of all debutants, Matthew Brennan may be the most likely to win a stage at the 2026 Vuelta a España
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Debutants Vuelta a España 2026
| # | Rider | Team | Age |
| 1 | OMRZEL Jakob | Bahrain - Victorious | 20y + 154d |
| 2 | WIDAR Jarno | Lotto Intermarché | 20y + 282d |
| 3 | TORRES Pablo | UAE Team Emirates - XRG | 20y + 285d |
| 4 | SENTJENS Sente | Alpecin - Premier Tech | 20y + 354d |
| 5 | BRENNAN Matthew | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 21y + 16d |
| 6 | PEACE Oliver | Team Picnic PostNL | 21y + 142d |
| 7 | DE SCHUYTENEER Steffen | Lotto Intermarché | 21y + 179d |
| 8 | CHAMBERLAIN Oscar | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | 21y + 219d |
| 9 | NORDHAGEN Jørgen | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 21y + 224d |
| 10 | MARTÍ Pau | NSN Cycling Team | 21y + 271d |
| 11 | MCKENZIE Hamish | Team Jayco AlUla | 21y + 343d |
| 12 | TUCKWELL Luke | Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe | 22y + 62d |
| 13 | RODRIGUEZ Juan Felipe | EF Education - EasyPost | 22y + 290d |
| 14 | MACÍAS César | Burgos Burpellet BH | 22y + 339d |
| 15 | ROMELE Alessandro | XDS Astana Team | 22y + 357d |
| 16 | ROMEO Iván | Movistar Team | 23y + 6d |
| 17 | THORNLEY Callum | Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe | 23y + 17d |
| 18 | DALBY Simon | Uno-X Mobility | 23y + 205d |
| 19 | WENZEL Mats | Equipo Kern Pharma | 23y + 246d |
| 20 | RENARD-HAQUIN Henri-François | Team Picnic PostNL | 23y + 253d |
| 21 | NYS Thibau | Lidl - Trek | 23y + 283d |
| 22 | BUSATTO Francesco | Alpecin - Premier Tech | 23y + 294d |
| 23 | SVESTAD-BÅRDSENG Embret | Netcompany INEOS | 23y + 355d |
| 24 | PALENI Enzo | Groupama - FDJ United | 24y + 84d |
| 25 | KRETSCHY Moritz | NSN Cycling Team | 24y + 102d |
| 26 | WEISS Fabian | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 24y + 133d |
| 27 | TRONCHON Bastien | Groupama - FDJ United | 24y + 146d |
| 28 | VAN BEKKUM Darren | XDS Astana Team | 24y + 155d |
| 29 | MACKELLAR Alastair | EF Education - EasyPost | 24y + 214d |
| 30 | WILKSCH Hannes | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 24y + 296d |
| 31 | URIARTE Diego | Equipo Kern Pharma | 24y + 300d |
| 32 | STEINHAUSER Georg | EF Education - EasyPost | 24y + 305d |
| 33 | GLOAG Thomas | Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | 24y + 343d |
| 34 | CALZONI Walter | Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | 25y + 14d |
| 35 | VAN TRICHT Floris | NSN Cycling Team | 25y + 60d |
| 36 | WANDAHL Frederik | Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe | 25y + 105d |
| 37 | VAN SINTMAARTENSDIJK Roel | Lotto Intermarché | 25y + 106d |
| 38 | LAURANCE Axel | Netcompany INEOS | 25y + 131d |
| 39 | TJØTTA Martin | Uno-X Mobility | 25y + 148d |
| 40 | PORTER Rudy | Team Jayco AlUla | 25y + 250d |
| 41 | ALLENO Clément | Burgos Burpellet BH | 25y + 318d |
| 42 | VAN DEN BOSSCHE Fabio | Soudal Quick-Step | 25y + 335d |
| 43 | KLUCKERS Arthur | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 26y + 160d |
| 44 | COBO Iván | Equipo Kern Pharma | 26y + 232d |
| 45 | MULUBRHAN Henok | XDS Astana Team | 26y + 284d |
| 46 | BRUSTENGA Marc | Equipo Kern Pharma | 26y + 352d |
| 47 | JOHANNESSEN Tobias Halland | Uno-X Mobility | 26y + 364d |
| 48 | GAFFURI Mattia | Team Picnic PostNL | 27y + 49d |
| 49 | LEKNESSUND Andreas | Uno-X Mobility | 27y + 93d |
| 50 | DE JONG Timo | Team Picnic PostNL | 27y + 147d |
| 51 | HELLEMOSE Asbjørn | Team Jayco AlUla | 27y + 219d |
| 52 | COVI Alessandro | Team Jayco AlUla | 27y + 328d |
| 53 | ELOSEGUI Iñigo | Equipo Kern Pharma | 28y + 169d |
| 54 | DVERSNES LAVIK Fredrik | Uno-X Mobility | 29y + 155d |
| 55 | ALBANESE Vincenzo | EF Education - EasyPost | 29y + 283d |
| 56 | MADOUAS Valentin | Groupama - FDJ United | 30y + 41d |
| 57 | DOUBLE Paul | Team Jayco AlUla | 30y + 58d |
| 58 | VADER Milan | Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team | 30y + 185d |
| 59 | DE VYLDER Lindsay | Alpecin - Premier Tech | 31y + 84d |
| 60 | THALMANN Roland | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 33y + 17d |
| 61 | LAPORTE Christophe | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 33y + 254d |

Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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