Mads Pedersen refuses to stop attacking. On Stage 13 of the
2025 Vuelta a España, the Dane was once again in the breakaway, making sure to
collect valuable points in his ongoing battle for the green jersey. While the
stage to the fearsome Alto de l’Angliru was always destined to end in a
showdown between the general classification contenders, Pedersen still found a
way to leave his mark by targeting the intermediate sprint.
At this year’s Giro d’Italia, Pedersen dominated the points
competition and captured four stage victories, but the Vuelta has not been as
straightforward. Despite several near misses, he is still waiting for a stage
win in Spain. Yet his determination to secure the green jersey has not wavered,
and he continues to spend his energy joining moves even on terrain that suits
pure climbers rather than sprinters.
By the end of Friday’s stage, Pedersen had boosted his tally
to 192 points. His advantage in the classification now stands at 70 points over
Jonas Vingegaard, who has surprisingly moved into second place thanks to the
race’s mountainous profile. “I wouldn’t call winning the intermediate sprint a
victory, but it’s nice to score some points,” Pedersen explained at the finish.
For Pedersen, the target is clear. “I think it’s pretty
clear that I’m racing to win, a stage and the points jersey. And I have to
compete for that almost every day. Jonas has a good chance of winning the green
jersey, and so does João. So I have to score points somewhere.” His words
underline how relentless the fight for green has become, with Vingegaard and
Almeida still close enough to pose a threat.
What encourages Pedersen is that the gap has grown during
this demanding week. “The gap—70 points—is bigger than four days ago, so that’s
comfortable. The Angliru was long, and I’m glad I don’t have to fight for the
win on a climb like that. I could take it easy and just finish. There were a
lot of people, which was nice.”
Pedersen knows the toughest climbs are not his battleground,
but the intermediate sprints and flatter finales remain within his grasp. As
long as he continues to accumulate points with the same consistency, he has
every chance of leaving Spain with another jersey to add to his collection.
Read also
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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- exactly, he had an amazing season, but with these overstatements they don‘t do him good.Ketterechts08-11-2026
- More to the point, it isn't his remaining goal.Renz08-11-2026
- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
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