Perico Delgado is clear on Enric Mas: “Barring a huge surprise, he will win the Vuelta a Espana"
Cycling
With four stages remaining in the 2026 Vuelta a Espana, Perico Delgado is fairly clear on who will finish the race wearing red in Madrid. In an exclusive interview with CyclingUpToDate, the former cyclist and Vuelta a Espana winner assessed the state of the race and named Enric Mas as the overwhelming favourite to take the overall victory, although he also issued an important warning about Primoz Roglic ahead of the time trial in Jerez de la Frontera.
Delgado believes Enric Mas has shown throughout the race that he has the legs to look towards the final stretch of La Vuelta with optimism. The Movistar Team rider has managed to build a significant advantage in the general classification and, especially in the most recent mountain stages, has shown a superiority that has not been common in his previous battles with Roglic.
That is why Perico was emphatic when giving his prediction: “Enric Mas, barring a huge surprise, will be the champion of the Vuelta a Espana.”
However, Delgado’s analysis includes one element that could temporarily change the picture: the time trial in Jerez de la Frontera. Although the way Roglic has looked in the mountain stages does not appear to correspond with his very best form, Perico explained that he has spoken directly with the Slovenian and that the rider’s own assessment is very different. According to Delgado, Roglic told him that he is “in one of the best forms of his career”.
That is a particularly relevant statement given that the time trial may be exactly the terrain on which the Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe rider can claw back a significant amount of the time he has lost to Enric Mas.
Perico expects the Balearic rider to concede a considerable amount of time against the clock. His estimate puts Mas’s loss at somewhere between one minute and 10 seconds and one minute and a half, while he even considers the possibility that Mas could lose two minutes.
If that kind of scenario were to play out, the Vuelta would open up again to some extent, although Delgado believes Enric has shown sufficiently strong legs to approach the final decisive stages with confidence afterwards.
Mas has held the Red Jersey since Tadej Pogacar's abandon
Enric Mas has shown stronger legs than Roglic
The key to Perico’s analysis lies precisely in what has happened on the road. Beyond the characteristics of the time trial, the former cyclist believes Enric Mas has looked stronger than Primoz Roglic in the mountains. And that completely changes how what happens after Jerez should be viewed.
The time trial may favour the Slovenian and allow him to reduce the gap, but afterwards comes the terrain on which Enric Mas has shown himself to be stronger. Delgado points especially to the Andalusian run between Malaga and Granada, where the Movistar Team leader could still have one final opportunity to consolidate his advantage.
Perico’s view is not that Enric will simply have to defend during the final stages. Quite the opposite. “If he keeps the legs he has shown during this Vuelta, Enric could even increase the gaps again in the mountains.”
That is why, despite the threat posed by the time trial, Delgado sticks with his prediction: Enric Mas is in a position to take the red jersey home and become the 2026 Vuelta a Espana champion.
Should Enric Mas’s victory carry an asterisk?
Another subject Perico Delgado was asked about was whether a hypothetical Enric Mas victory should carry an asterisk because of Tadej Pogacar’s abandonment. The Vuelta winner’s answer was emphatic: “No.”
Delgado believes Grand Tours are won on the road and that circumstances are part of the competition itself. “Enric Mas is where he is because he has managed to perform better than his rivals and because he has known how to make the most of the opportunities the race has given him.”
Perico then took the argument a step further and pointed out that, following that logic, “you would also have to put an asterisk next to the Tour de France won by Tadej Pogacar because of Jonas Vingegaard’s abandonment”.
His reasoning is simple: abandonments are also part of Grand Tours and do not diminish the achievement of the rider who ultimately prevails on the road. Enric Mas, moreover, has not simply preserved an inherited advantage. He has had to defend the red jersey, has responded to attacks from his main rivals and has managed to create gaps in the mountains. His performances in the most recent stages have turned the Vuelta into a very different race from the one that could have been imagined before the start.
The time trial could be the final major test
The biggest obstacle Enric Mas will face is the Jerez time trial. Perico Delgado acknowledges that Roglic “can take back a significant amount of time and that, therefore, the result of the time trial battle will be decisive in determining what kind of advantage the leader takes into the final stages”.
But there is one factor working in Enric’s favour: the legs he has shown so far. If the Balearic rider can limit his losses to Roglic and maintain a significant advantage in the general classification, the terrain that follows could suit him.
Perico Delgado’s analysis therefore leaves one clear conclusion: Roglic still has one major weapon in the time trial, but Enric Mas has done enough on the road to be considered the clear favourite for overall victory.
Jorge BorregueroWriter
Jorge Borreguero is a journalist with a degree from the Complutense University of Madrid and has been a writer for Cyclinguptodate and Ciclismoaldia since early 2023. In this role, he has played a key part in the evolution of the website, particularly as a specialist covering Movistar Team. He regularly writes race reports, analytical pieces, and in-depth features about the team, and has conducted exclusive interviews and attended multiple team presentations, providing readers with firsthand insights into one of the leading professional cycling squads.
Throughout his career, Jorge has maintained a strong focus on sports journalism, gaining experience across a variety of disciplines, including basketball and football. However, his current work is almost entirely dedicated to cycling, contributing extensively to Ciclismoaldia and its sister website Cyclinguptodate. For these platforms, he combines thorough research with detailed reporting to deliver high-quality content, ranging from race previews and results to expert analysis of teams and riders.
Jorge’s reporting is marked by accuracy, depth, and a commitment to providing readers with reliable and authoritative information. His direct engagement with teams, athletes, and events ensures that his coverage reflects firsthand knowledge and professional insight. Through his work, he has established himself as a trusted voice in professional cycling journalism, bridging the gap between the sport and its global audience while maintaining rigorous editorial standards.
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- i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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- And we, what are we doing?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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