“I’m one of the favourites to win the Vuelta” - Enric Mas embraces growing belief ahead of decisive La Pandera showdown
Cycling
Enric Mas is no longer shying away from his position at the head of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana, openly describing himself as one of the favourites for overall victory after safely retaining the red jersey on Stage 13.
The Movistar Team leader came through another frantic day without losing ground to Primoz Roglic, Felix Gall or Oscar Onley, before immediately turning his attention towards Saturday’s summit finish at La Pandera.
“To enjoy wearing red, to enjoy having the opportunity to be one of the favourites to win the Vuelta, and that’s how it will surely be tomorrow,” Mas said after the finish.
That confidence follows another strong spell from the Spaniard in the mountains, with Mas having already strengthened his position over several of his main rivals before one of the toughest finishes of the race.
“The plan was clear”
Stage 13 itself was dominated by a huge breakaway battle, with Mattias Skjelmose’s presence up the road briefly introducing another GC complication. Mas admitted the day had again been anything but straightforward. “Today was a crazy stage, as we’re seeing every day at La Vuelta,” he said.
For Movistar, however, the composition of the break ultimately helped reduce the amount of work they needed to do behind. “As you saw, the plan was clear, and it worked out very well for us that Mattias Skjelmose could get in there,” Mas explained. “We only used one rider to pull, and the other teams came to help us.”
That left Movistar able to preserve several riders ahead of La Pandera rather than carrying the full responsibility of controlling a stage eventually won from the break by Wout van Aert.
Mas will now start Stage 14 in red as the race heads towards the 11.8-kilometre final climb, averaging 7.5 per cent, where Roglic, Gall and the other GC contenders will again have an opportunity to test the race leader.
“If you want, we can finish the Vuelta tomorrow”
The extreme heat expected around the race also became a major topic after the stage. Asked about the possibility of conditions forcing changes to the race, Mas initially responded with a joke. “If you want, we can finish the Vuelta tomorrow.”
He quickly followed that with a more serious assessment of the risks riders could face if temperatures become excessive. “In the end, we have to look after everyone’s wellbeing. If there is extreme heat, then obviously we’ll have to talk among ourselves, reach an agreement with the organisation, with the UCI, with the CPA, with everyone. But obviously we can’t mess around with things like that either, because it’s dangerous.”
Mas was also reminded of his comments from the previous day about the race effectively turning into “heaters” because of the temperatures, and was jokingly asked whether he wanted them switched off. “No, like I said before, we’re getting on with it. Yes, being summer, I think it was to be expected,” he replied with a laugh.
The joking will stop once the road begins climbing again on Stage 14, with Mas taking the red jersey into La Pandera as the rider every one of his principal GC rivals now has to dislodge.
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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- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
- I'm picking .... .... Never mind 🫥flyer07-11-2026
- If Tiberi has a better and more consistent 2027 I somehow doubt it will be because of this victorious warning. Unless his preparation has been off, cycling isn't football.flyer07-11-2026
- Love this guy. He is such a pure racer.mij07-11-2026
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