Young British rider surprises himself by almost winning Vuelta time trial - Red Bull Grand Tour debutant came just two seconds short of stage win
CyclingFriday, 11 September 2026 at 10:26
Stefan Kung winning stage 18 of the Vuelta a Espana wasn't a major surprise, but his close runner-up just two seconds shy certainly raised a few eyebrows. Red Bull's Callum Thornley finished second on the day and almost pulled off a shock first Grand Tour win.
The 32 kilometer time trial saw the likes of Kung, Joao Almeida, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Bruno Armirail and Ethan Hayter crowd a talented top ten. However, Thornley's performance was made more impressive considering he finished ahead of all but one.
A time trial specialist, Thornley has made his breakthrough this season as the 23-year-old picked up fourth place on the opening stage time trial, adding to a third place finish on the final stage of the Tour de Pologne last month as he prepared for his Vuelta debut.
Speaking after his second place, Thornley admitted that he went faster than he had expected, and that he was very happy with his performance.
“From the simulations I was around 35'35", so I went faster. I'm very happy with the time I did, especially to have been beaten by such a small gap".
Thornley delighted with first Grand Tour results
In his first year with the Red Bull WorldTour setup after his promotion from their development team, Thornley didn't arrive at the Vuelta with a time trial goal, but admitted his delight at picking up a podium spot in his first three week race.
“I think I did some good time trials in this Vuelta, at the beginning of the race the time trials were not my objective, but the most important thing is that I managed to achieve these results in my first Grand Tour.”
Meanwhile, he finished ahead of his general classification leader Roglic, who despite a good time, did not make up huge swathes of time he had expected to before the stage.
Roglic happy with his time trial
Roglic managed to pull back 33 seconds on leader Enric Mas, but fell short of what he needed to take the lead as he now sits 1:37 behind him in second overall.
“From the start, good, and then more and more to the finish, more and more tired,” Roglič told Eurosport.
“But looking at how I ran into this Vuelta, like I said, with zero hours or minutes on the TT bike at all, I delivered for myself a nice time trial today. So definitely super happy about it.”
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.
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- Puzzled what mental illness has to be going for stage win. Crashes in the peleton have no link to mental illness just poor judgement riding or not paying attention. Please do not link mental illness to crashes .paultryan200211-09-2026
- I swear to god if Roglič does the same thing to Mas as he did to Thomas at the Giro, I'll fkn laugh my head off. LET HIM HAVE IT, ROGLA... crush him like your compatriot, Pogi The Great, would crush him. Baby Hulk would say "SMASH !!!"PogiSloFans11-09-2026
- I swear to god if Roglic does the same thing to Mas as he did to Thomas at the Giro, I'll fkn cry. LET HIM HAVE ONE, ROGLAwrsty11-09-2026
- It's called "supply and demand". People tend to be paid what they're worth (their discounted marginal value product). Just because he's the greatest cyclist, doesn't mean he would ever get paid what the greatest tennis player would be paid. There is more to the calculation than talent and hard work.acem8211-09-2026
- You’re going to have to come to correct often, CHF is dropping like a Tête de Moine rolling down from Bellelay.Mistermaumau10-09-2026
- So, I see despite my request that not only haven’t you reviewed your figures or commented since someone here did some better maths than you (thanks) but you made zero effort to think about the costs involved in collecting the fines. The original expression stems from written statements and promises that can’t be trusted but in the era of automation it received a second life when people started complaining about receiving bills (in the days when everything was done by post) to pay that didn’t cover the price of the stamp on the envelope let alone the costs of sending the bill, e.g rectification bills or utility bills for unoccupied lodgings. The minimum monthly salary in the poorest part of Switzerland is over 4000€ which sets employers back close to 6000€. UCI employees are unlikely to be on minimum salary, being sent abroad is likely to be associated with higher wages but also expenses to pay (travel & lodgings (different location every day), food & drink & a stipend) plus unseen expenses like insurance, min 4000km worth of fuel, etc. Then you forget office, admin & personnel costs, costs of enforcement and collection, accounting, bank fees, etc. run a company a while and see how money leaks out invisibly non-stop. Once there, a commissaire needs a vehicle, and a driver (can’t drive and officiate or write notes simultaneously) Up to stage 18 they fined 12400CHF, 3 stages left. EVEN if they sent only ONE commissaire, they’re not breaking even at this rate. With just 2, they’re losing. Of course by your calculation of raking in over 60k, yeah you could call it that way but you could also just write a fiction in your snazzy UCI office about a golden egg laying goose and earn far more from selling that than doing this, if it didn’t infringe copyright. Now, there is a possibility that these people aren’t even UCi employees but just officials paid fir missions. The going rate for that is 250CHF/day. Add 100 for hotel and 100 for expenses and you’re billing 450 a day for 30 days almost without the other necessary costs, same result.Mistermaumau10-09-2026
- Thought you you retired cuz your golden boy is out for the year? Dang now we get more of your nonsense for free!frieders310-09-2026
- Oh boy, still here? Here’s an idea, donate 1 Euro to each team for every post you’re making since your supposed retirement here. If that’s not enough, they can sell autographs or auction off their paraphernalia. I think compared to similar sports (swimming, triathlon, running) they do pretty well these days. They probably also earn better than rugby or cricket. Did you see what people were prepared to pay for the WC, Superbowl or Tennis finals? Where will cycling rake in that kind of money without Infantinotising its soul? LIV has applied for bankruptcy, Michael Johnson’s reputation has taken a big hit, the enhanced games won’t be enhancing much more, Saudi laundromoney is drying up, bike sales are plummeting, it’s not the best time to be asking for pay rises. Besides, there are plenty of others willing to take any freed up places for lower wages and it’s rare to get offered much better for the same performance by switching employer (perhaps because employers got burnt a few times in the past). And now excuse me, I have to go take care of this golden goose crapMistermaumau10-09-2026
- From none to 2 stage wins in a Grand Tour. Chapeau, Tudor. Maybe it'll be more by the end
Rafionain-Glas10-09-2026 - Chapeau to Mas for an amazing ride! Yes, if Pog were here he’d be ahead by 20 minutes now, but he’s not.Crashjames10-09-2026
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