Vuelta's day of reckoning arrives - Can Roglic claw back Mas? INEOS' Vuelta reaches a crossroads and Visma's relentless pursuit
Cycling
The time for talking at the Vuelta a Espana is over. With just four stages remaining, a blockbuster finale kicks off with stage 18's time trial on Thursday. There's no rest for the bunch soon after as a double-helping of mountain stages comes before a final punchy battle to finish the race.
With the red jersey battle finely poised heading into its final days, Enric Mas boasts a lead of 2:06 and 2:10 respectively on Felix Gall and Primoz Roglic, with the time trial certain to shake up those gaps.
INEOS have endured a mixed race by their standards as Oscar Onley fights for a top five and the white jersey. However, with no other general classification card to play and no in-form threat for the coming stages, their race hangs in the balance as Onley's white jersey is threatened bya vaguely familiar foe.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, Visma come with virtually nothing to lose and more to gain their relentless surge of stage wins at the Vuelta. With seven already, they're plotting a different route to victory in these coming days. We've taken a look at some of the big talking points ahead of the Vuelta time trial on Thursday.
Primoz Roglic, Enric Mas and Felix Gall at the 2026 Vuelta a España
Can Roglic claw back red jersey Mas?
It's the day Movistar have circled not long after Mas reluctantly rode into the red jersey. Although the Spanish rider has looked at home at the front of the race and even put time into Roglic and Gall over the past ten days, he knows he likely won't on stage 18.
The time trial has traditionally always been synonymous with Roglic and a vital tool in his arsenal that has saw him reach precipice of Vuelta immortality. But if the Slovenian wants a history-making fifth crown this weekend, he needs an almighty performance against the clock.
Our analysis has shown that he needs to take around four seconds per kilometer of the 32 kilometer test. In recent time trials head-to-head excluding the short prologue on stage one, Roglic has taken at least 2.5 and in some cases over 3 seconds per kilometer on Mas.
Roglic's 2023 Giro time trial performance springs to mind in the Slovenian's ability to dig deep when it matters, but study of the time gaps between them suggest Roglic could at least half Mas's lead. However, can Mas rise to the occasion and find some power in the red jersey defence?
Read also
INEOS Vuelta reaches a crossroads
Netcompany INEOS have endured a rollercoaster season after a particularly disappointing Tour de France. However, the wheels haven't stopped turning as they find themselves in a general classification battle - even if the red jersey isn't at stake currently.
The white jersey is worth fighting for for Geraint Thomas's outfit. Oscar Onley sits in fifth place and in white, but sixth overall and also in the white jersey battle lies Jakob Omrzel. A 20-year-old Slovenian in the Vuelta who took a mountain stage win, certainly a reminder to a Tadej Pogacar-shaped memory carved into the back of many in cycling's minds.
Onley has admitted to suffering ups and downs over the first two weeks, but boasts just 30 seconds of an advantage on the Bahrain-Victorious youngster in his bid to hold onto the white jersey.
Should INEOS lose the jersey, they drop out of the top five and continue the race without a stage win or leader's jersey to show for their Grand Tour so far.
Matthew Brennan at the 2026 Vuelta a Espana
Visma chase more glory
Seven stage wins isn't enough for Visma | Lease a Bike. With Matthew Brennan's five and Wout van Aert's two, it's their most successful Grand Tour in terms of top spots on the podium. Without Jonas Vingegaard, their eye has been almost solely on stage wins and they've gotten their reward.
But they'll be back for more and have a few cards to play, beginning at the time trial. Wout van Aert is among the favourites, and after not contesting the sprint on Wednesday, could be saving his legs for Thursday's test. Meanwhile, powerhouse Bruno Armirail is sure to stretch the legs in the race against the clock.
Then come the mountains - Sepp Kuss's playground. The American is 10th at 8:55 from the red jersey, giving him plenty of freedom to potentially go up the road on stages 19 and 20 to try and take a stage win. He said after stage 17 that an attack was on the cards, expect to see the former Vuelta winner have a dig.
If all else fails, Brennan and Van Aert could have one last hurrah on the streets of Granada. If a red jersey battle remains by the final day there may not be much of an opportunity, but if things are all but wrapped up, the terrain could lend itself to another show of strength in a punchy parcours.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Ernesto Maggioni - The president of the commissaires Mafia. It is getting evident that this guy is basically "Iamalwaysrightandyouarestupidsoiwontlistentoyou" kind of guy. So fire him so that he can be always right in his homeabstractengineer10-11-2026
- Somehow it has got into his mind that he is a GC rider. He is primarily a classics and stage rider who can perform on GC given his day. As a result he is wasting his time on TDF GC and once committed to GC you are too tired to do anything else.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- 🐐❤️Lozza09-11-2026
- This is such a black eye to women's professional cyclocross if this result remains. Marie Schreiber won this race fairly. This finish is not unlike others in cyclocross. Lots of moving around to get to the finish not to cut anyone off , but to generate a sprint on soft wide tires caked with mud and sand. This is not nearly the same as a road race between two riders sprinting to the finish on faster bikes and thinner firmer tires. The powers in charge need to use some common sense, reverse this result and remember this is Cyclocross not Road racing. Unbelievable. . .Zencycle09-11-2026
- Tis beyond your comprehension fine sir so best not to look on with blind eyes to THE GOATS greatness.
Brucegel09-11-2026 - McNulty winning was beneficial in ensuring the rainbow jersey would not remain winless
Front24209-11-2026 - Eccelente! That's 7 riders in total in Red Bull who come from the devo team, 8 if you include Lipo
Rafionain-Glas09-11-2026 - again, nothing is going to be resolved. it is a discussion board. I simply said I didn't see how MS impeded LBs sprint. the UCI doesn't care about my thoughts, and I am really not that emotionally invested in it.mij09-11-2026
- provoke change, lol. this is a discussion board. nothing is going to change by what I say here. just commenting that it didn't look like MS impeded Brand. beyond that not trying to go too deep.mij09-11-2026
- as excellent as maga rednecks chloe dygert (and quinn simmons)?Ketterechts09-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment