"The best Enric Mas we've ever seen" - Final Vuelta a España week makes room for a clear favourite
CyclingTuesday, 08 September 2026 at 11:30
The Vuelta a España enters its final week this Tuesday and the fight for the overall win is wide open. Whilst Enric Mas closes in on a maiden Grand Tour win, Primoz Roglic and Felix Gall remain large threats. On the CyclingUpToDate Podcast, Rúben Silva and Gavin Quinn have discussed the Spanish race's dynamics.
After the withdrawal of Tadej Pogacar, the race has gained an entirely new dynamic. Movistar has been placed in the lead of the race and the defensive position, trying to defend itself from the stronger collective of Decathlon CMA CGM Team, whilst trying to make the difference to Primoz Roglic who has a 32-kilometer long time trial in the final week where he is expected to gain time on the competition.
"These are all riders who I would love to see when a grand tour essentially, but like you said it it seems to be down to a three kind of three rider race now at the front," Quinn said.
"There's a there's a pretty definitive gap between the podium and Richard Carapaz for Oscar Onlye in fifth, and I think last last week when we also looked at this It was about seven riders in the fight and now we're down to three. So And we've got three riders who can take time or feel like they can take time in different stages".
Movistar stepping up to the occasion
The Spanish team thrived at Calar Alto and on stage 12, they assured that they had the collective to also make the difference and race on the attack, not just defend. Enric Mas, on his part, has taken his first Vuelta win in years, in style, at the Alto de Aitana. Ever since, the Spaniard has not put a foot wrong.
"Enric Mas is unbelievably confident, unbelievably assured all week. From his stage win at the end of last week, iIt feels like It's like a culmination of nearly seven seven years of Enric Mas' career. You know, there's been a lot of tough times a lot of a lot of disappointments, a lot of podiums, top fives at the Tour de France... You would have thought that maybe his podium fights for GC are over. But what we're seeing this like particularly in the last week is the best Enric Mas we've ever seen".
In the final week, stages 19 and 20 provide launchpads for big differences to be made in the mountains, following the time trial on stage 18. The extreme heat, potential crosswinds early in the week and the new explosive circuit finale in Granada are all obstacles in the way of the climbers as well.
Felix Gall sits in second place currently, 2:06 minutes off the red jersey. "He's gonna use stage 19 or 20 as potential launch pads and he's gonna try his best to break Enric Mas, and we and we get to sit back and watch it".
In third place, Primoz Roglic at 2:10 minutes. "Even on stage 18, we're probably gonna see Primoz Roglic give his best to try and narrow that window closer to Mas.Aand then if Primoz Roglic does that you have three riders who are probably gonna fancy their chances".
The duo have asserted that Mas might find himself an ally of occasion in Gall himself, if he is able to distance the Austrian rider enough by the time the riders reach the final two mountain stages. Gall's mountain train has allowed Mas to make further difference in the mountains, specially as Primoz Roglic now appears to be Mas' biggest rival.
"If Felix Gall wasn't there we could have seen we could have seen Eric Mas staring down Primoz Roglic a little bit longer than he could have".
Felix Gall and Enric Mas put time into the other GC contenders on stage 14
Mas finishing his story
Silva put forward the emotional side of the battle, one whose nature is quite different from most modern Grand Tours. "We saw this last year with Simon Yates," he refers to the 2025 Giro d'Italia.
Comparing the sport (in which it happens naturally) to WWE, he emphasized the importance of compelling year-long storytelling that grabs the fans' excitement in a way it couldn't otherwise. "This is something that captivates us, it captivates fans of a sport or show or whatever it is".
"Simon Yates had this love story with the Giro d'Italia in which he was so close to winning it in 2018. And then it just looked like he was done there was no chance. You enter the 2025 Giro and not even as a contender for the victory really, and when he won it, it just makes you feel like 'that's just great, isn't it?' Paris-Roubaix 2026 Wout Van Aert, he's been seeking the monument victory - a cobbled monument victory, of course - for years and years and years".
In Enric Mas, he sees another story that has been created still in the 2010's, which may come to a close this Sunday in Granada. "I think 2019 or 2018, one of them, he was already there. And I felt like like he was done [...] and I thought that mine for going for podium even would just be super unlikely".
"Everything just seems to be clicking together in a way that you would never think of it, and I want him to finish his story. I think that Mas winning this Vuelta would be one of the most it would be similar to Van Aert winning Roubaix and I would cheer for it in the same way".
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Quinn agreed with the idea, having Mas as one of the riders whose victory would make the biggest impact. "The greatest kind of story sporting stories are always forged in heartbreak, in close calls, in injuries, pain and often over long periods of time over multiple years".
"Nobody goes to the the movies to watch a movie about somebody who goes and just wins. You know it's human nature. I guess to root for somebody who's relatable who's fallen and gets back up and And finds a way and kind of learns from it".
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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