"My legs are not responding in the key moment" - Carlos Rodríguez held back at Vuelta by mysterious condition
CyclingFriday, 28 August 2026 at 06:00
Carlos Rodríguez was long viewed as the future GC star of Netcompany INEOS, the successor of Team Sky's legacy. But since 2024, the Spaniard's progress stagnated notably. And despite some glimpses of his potential, the 25-year-old's renaissance at 2026 Vuelta a Espana is not happening.
Instead, Rodríguez continues to struggle. In the hard stage in Andorra, the Spaniard lost 22 minutes and completely withdrew from the general classification. And even though his performance today was slight bit better, the Netcompany INEOS rider remains far off pre-race expectations.
"It wasn't the day I expected," Rodríguez told reporters including Cyclingnews after stage 5. "At the top of the Envalira [the first climb of the day, ed.] my legs weren't responding well, and from then on I took it easy to the finish. It didn't make any sense to go on pushing myself."
"I'll just have to see how my legs react during the Vuelta. For some reason, when the key moment arrives, they're just not responding. But we're going on doing things well and we're still focussed."
This comes out of the blue
Carlos Rodríguez has been previously withdrawn from Netcompany INEOS nomination for Grande Boucle. Whether it was a mistake to not include the 2023 Tour de France, we'll never know. But the fact remains that while Rodríguez himself was disappointed by the decision, the British team did not ride a good race in his absence either way.
As a compensation, the Spaniard has been promised a leadership opportunity at Vuelta, but as later turned out, that would be only in the shadow of Oscar Onley. Also because of his own lacking level.
Carlos Rodriguez
Mysterious condition
The reason the 25-year-old can't perform remains a mystery to the rider, who claims that in training, things looked as if they would work out well. "We have to go on trying to work out what the reason could be to find an explanation. Until then, we'll just go on being optimistic and trying to be sure it doesn't affect us."
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As for the remainder of the on-going Vuelta, Rodríguez modestly acknowledges that the best he can do is be of help to team leader Oscar Onley - currently seventh overall. "I want to go on helping Oscar, who's doing really well and showing that too. So we'll see how my legs evolve from here on, and we'll try and do things as well as possible."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses 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.
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- That was almost a 1-2 like at Emilia same year. There’s definitely a pattern with Golden boy, really making a habit of coming off the road when someone puts him under pressure. He’s emulating Roglo, going for 4 Vueltas but silver coloured, and achieving it would be ironic, he would ensure a guy who prevented him from tasting gold won’t taste silver. All said, his performance is not that much of a surprise, the Vuelta often brought out the best in himJumpyjohn28-08-2026
- HornheadJumpyjohn28-08-2026
- He didn’t say many he said millions and two is plural so the phrase is completely correct. Also, anyone having lived in a similarly small country will know and tell you it is hard to avoid meeting anyone (regularly) with similar interests so what is it you’re actually trying to say? In fact, as his biggest fan (since Maria is no longer with us it seems) I’m actually disappointed you’ve only met him THREE times, sounds like he’s trying to avoid you as much as Melania is avoiding her husband, which might explain his ever growing childishness, gravity must really be weighing his down.Jumpyjohn28-08-2026
- All old men on Earth have those, it’s called gravityJumpyjohn28-08-2026
- You just have a huge mouth !frieders328-08-2026
- 20/20 HIndsight Doper Horner ...blah blah blah !frieders328-08-2026
- If you want to be in the break away in this Vuelta, you better be fifteen minutes down on GC.awp27-08-2026
- Who would have ever thought that the guy providing all of the excitement in this stage would be Enric Mas? Congratulations to him on a fantastic ride!
santiagobenites27-08-2026 - Bravo Enriquet!
Rafionain-Glas27-08-2026 - Pogačar and Mas going 1 - 2 like it's Il Lombardia 2022. What an amazing climb by Mas. Seriously. Is he suddenly positioned to be second to a Slovenian, once again?RidesHills27-08-2026
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