“I’m very envious of him” – Mikel Landa watches Enric Mas lead Vuelta during ‘worst year’ of his own career
CyclingFriday, 04 September 2026 at 15:00
Mikel Landa has spent much of his career pursuing the Grand Tour breakthrough now within Enric Mas’ reach. As Mas carries the red jersey into the decisive second half of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana, his fellow Spaniard is enduring a season he would rather forget.
Mas inherited the race lead following Tadej Pogacar’s withdrawal, but victory on the Alto de Aitana and another successful attack on the road to Calar Alto have strengthened his position. The Movistar leader now holds a 1:45 advantage over four-time winner Primoz Roglic, with Felix Gall a further 21 seconds behind.
Watching Mas convert another podium challenge into control of the race prompted an unusually candid admission from Landa. It was accompanied by an unequivocal defence of a rider who has spent years returning to the Vuelta in pursuit of its greatest prize.
“I’m very envious of him,” Landa told MARCA. “I don’t think anybody has given him anything.”
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Mas turns repeated near-misses into control
Mas has repeatedly reached the Vuelta podium without securing the overall victory that would transform how his Grand Tour career is remembered. Landa believes that history only makes the current red jersey more deserved.
“He has been on the podium of the Vuelta four or five times, so persistence pays off,” he said. “He has the lead now, he looks very strong and confident, and I hope he can keep it.”
Landa knows the demands of repeatedly challenging without reaching the top step. He has finished on the Giro d’Italia podium twice and came fourth at the Tour de France, while spending years among the strongest climbers and most closely scrutinised Grand Tour contenders in Spanish cycling.
Mas has now placed himself closer than ever to escaping the same cycle. Pogacar’s crash dramatically changed the shape of the Vuelta, but Mas has since beaten Roglic, Gall and Oscar Onley on the road while steadily increasing his advantage.
Landa has endured a quiet Vuelta so far
“The worst year of my career”
Landa’s own Vuelta began with more modest ambitions. After struggling throughout 2026, he entered the race searching for competitive sensations rather than targeting the red jersey.
There have at least been signs of progress during the opening half of the race. “It took me a little while to get going, but I was already finishing a bit better last week,” Landa explained. “The rest day also did us good, and I’m optimistic about this week.”
Saturday’s mountain stage and the later stages around Granada and Malaga have been identified as his best remaining opportunities. Success on one of those days would give Landa something tangible from a Vuelta that began with his form and confidence still uncertain. “Those are the stages that suit me best,” he said of the forthcoming climbing tests.
His condition has also influenced his expectations for the World Championships. Spanish national coach Alejandro Valverde is following the performances of his potential selections at the Vuelta, but Landa does not currently consider himself strong enough to justify a place. “I don’t think I’m good enough to go this year, so if I see him, we’ll talk about other things,” Landa said.
Finishing the Vuelta competitively has instead become the immediate priority before he closes the book on a bruising campaign. “I want to finish as well as possible,” he explained. “Fortunately, I’m not suffering from any major discomfort, so I’m calm about that. I want to finish with a little bit of form, think about next year and forget this year, because it has been the worst of my career.”
Euskaltel offers Landa a reset
The prospect of joining the new Euskaltel project has given Landa a more positive destination beyond the Vuelta. It represents both a sporting challenge and a return to the Basque identity around which the opening years of his professional career were formed.
“For me, it has been something wonderful, something we have dreamed about for years,” he said. “We didn’t know whether it would ever be possible, and we said: ‘Come on, now or never.’ So I’m very happy about the new project and the new season.”
Before that new beginning, the remaining mountain stages offer Landa opportunities to rediscover the aggression that has defined his best performances. Mas starts them from the position both riders have spent years trying to reach: wearing red and controlling his own route towards a first Grand Tour victory.
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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