“I enjoyed wearing the jersey like a little kid” - Enric Mas ends four-year drought with statement Vuelta win in red
CyclingSunday, 30 August 2026 at 18:00
Enric Mas ended a four-year wait for victory in emphatic fashion on the Alto de Aitana, winning Stage 9 of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana while strengthening his grip on the red jersey.
The Movistar leader dropped Primoz Roglic and Felix Gall during the decisive kilometres of the final climb before beating Oscar Onley, the only rider able to follow his final acceleration. Onley finished six seconds behind, Roglic at 12 seconds and Gall at 18.
It was Mas’s first victory since the Giro dell’Emilia in October 2022 and came less than 24 hours after Tadej Pogacar’s crash and withdrawal dramatically changed the complexion of the Vuelta.
Rather than simply protecting the red jersey he inherited following Pogacar’s exit, Mas immediately delivered a stage victory in it. He reaches the first rest day leading Roglic by 18 seconds, with Gall at 1:39 and Onley at 2:20.
“From now on we're going to wear it with pride”
The significance of finally winning again was obvious when Mas spoke after the finish. “I enjoyed wearing the jersey like a little kid. Today I think we really do deserve it, and from now on we're going to wear it with pride,” he said.
Mas has spent much of the intervening four years regularly competing near the front of Grand Tours without adding another victory. Aitana therefore brought together two things that have repeatedly eluded him: another professional win and the opportunity to celebrate while leading his home Grand Tour.
It also provided Movistar with a rare opportunity to enjoy a major victory at the centre of a Grand Tour battle. “Ivan Romeo last year in Valencia, they said we received criticism for how we celebrated victories, but there are very few of them,” Mas said, recalling the reaction to his teammate’s previous success.
There was certainly no restraint on Aitana as Movistar celebrated their leader converting the red jersey into a stage victory at the first opportunity.
Enric Mas, in red at La Vuelta
Mas takes his “little bite” after Pogacar withdrawal
The circumstances surrounding the race inevitably remained part of Mas’s reaction.
Pogacar had dominated the opening week before his Stage 8 crash brought his Vuelta to a sudden end, leaving Mas at the head of a completely transformed general classification. “After Tadej's misfortune yesterday, today I needed what happened. Another little bite. Hopefully we can keep taking more little bites all the way to Granada,” Mas said.
Aitana provided the first indication of what that reshaped fight for the Vuelta might look like. Roglic remains only 18 seconds behind, but Mas has now responded to becoming race leader by beating all of his principal rivals on the hardest climbing stage of the race so far.
Asked whether he could now picture himself winning the Vuelta, however, the 31-year-old was unwilling to go that far. “I'll pass on that one,” he replied with a smile.
Mas does not need to make the declaration yet. After nine stages, the red jersey and the strongest ride on Aitana have already made his position clear.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- It’s a valid stance but by no means guaranteed, there are plenty of people who do not or aren’t interested to learn from what they would first even have to recognise as mistakes, look at humans (or simply history or families) as a whole. Also, I do not know of many employees who do not NOTICE or come under pressure from employers, that doesn’t mean they will crumble but of course they get influenced. As for doing what’s good for your athletes, you only have to look at the number of past players with problems to see how many didn’t have their best interests at heart. Also, HOW would Tadej himself know if he was ready, this is the guy who wanted to get up to continue racing. As soon as he feels CAPABLE he’ll want to go for it, like a drunk or tired person who wants to drive his car home, CAPABLE is not a valid appreciation of a global situation. Who should we pick as example, Lindsey Vonn perhaps? Who stopped her?Jumpyjohn30-08-2026
- I should have made it clearer. I thought you would understand the context. When I say luck it then functions as a metaphor when you compare misfortune or random timing to tangible physical forces, objects, or paths.Cyclingsbestfan30-08-2026
- Sorry but it’s not always about luck and it certainly doesn’t seem like it this time.Jumpyjohn30-08-2026
- How predictable. You keep moaning about people from other nations being biased concerning « balkan » riders but it seems you’re the only one with a nation bias. In any case, you don’t give much credit or respect to foreigners who support « your » riders and you don’t seem to realise that an awful lot of cycling fans’ favourite riders are not from their own country.. I am very happy that like in some other sports, most fans can keep nationalism out of their admiration.Jumpyjohn30-08-2026
- I take the stance that you learn from your mistakes. Gianetti is no different. Do you honestly think that Pogacar (now a multi millionare) is going to race before being absolutely ready and would be influenced in that decision by money or by Gianetti?Cyclingsbestfan30-08-2026
- That’s the thing about being in shock, your body and mind make you lose your senses and you imagine you can do anything.Jumpyjohn30-08-2026
- Mas should win but we need to keep an eye on the TT where PR could do what was done to him. Oh and of course, let’s not take anything for granted with fishbowl memoriy, until it’s a done thingJumpyjohn30-08-2026
- Am interested to get more of your insight on what you’re saying. I know from experience and logic that fractures CAN heal stronger (IF properly treated). On the other hand, there are also cases where fractures cannot heal properly and stay weak points or where another fall on a (maybe stronger) fracture creates a more complex fracture adjacent making it more problematic to heal. But my real concern is whether this stronger repairing applies to every type of bone as vertebrae are quite unique in that it isn’t really the bone that matters but the interaction of the ensemble with other parts. Ican even imagine that the change of size and shape of the new material vertebrae can have implications on the very sensitive surrounding tissue and functions. MVDP suffered pain for years that affected his performance though I don’t recall what his exact injuries and protocol were.Jumpyjohn30-08-2026
- Outstanding race. Mas looked good on that last climb. Onley my fellow countryman showed the he is a contender. Roglic unfortunately was distanced. He might still podium with any luck. He will need it though. Widar is looking like a find. He did a great ride.Cyclingsbestfan30-08-2026
- Yes he is a talent. MVP was out of luck yet again.Cyclingsbestfan30-08-2026
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