Reinvigoration for Mas, Resurgence for Roglič

Enric Mas and Primož Roglič occupied the top two places on the final podium of the Vuelta a España, but both riders had major doubts around them approaching the race.

Performing as well as they did was a surprise to both, with injury woes and uncertain form plaguing both in recent seasons.

Mas sealed his win with an authoritative display during the Vuelta, having been the only rider capable of catching and then staying with Tadej Pogačar on stage 6, and then inheriting the race lead when the Slovenian crashed out two days later.

He held the red jersey from there all the way to the finish, appearing the strongest on all the climbs right up until Felix Gall took 17 seconds back on him on Saturday’s final mountain stage.

That was too little, too late, and Mas cruised to overall victory in Sunday’s concluder. The stakes were lowered somewhat before the start when the organizers announced that the GC fight would be neutralized with one lap to go over safety concerns.

“It’s just special,” Mas said. “It’s been a day to remember, a special Vuelta, and it has been wonderful.”

The Spaniard started the final day 2:15 ahead of Roglič and 2:44 in front of Gall. And while it was theoretically possible for him to lose if he crashed, there was no such a calamity on the roads of Granada.

“There’s always tension about what could happen,” he admitted. “But you’ve seen it all went smoothly, so we’re delighted. We enjoyed every kilometer today.”

Delivering on early potential

Mas wasn’t high in the list of pre-race favorites, even though he was second overall three times and third once before.

His form has been hit and miss for the past two years, ever since he fell on the descent of the Múr-de-Bretagne in the 2025 Tour de France and was a DNF.

He was subsequently diagnosed with thrombophlebitis, possibly as a result of the crash. The condition is caused by a blood clot and is similar to varicose veins. It brought his season to a premature end and he underwent surgery last October to treat it. But while he was second in his debut race this season, he had a relatively anonymous Giro d’Italia and received criticism from team management.

“The real tests are in the races and there, unfortunately, the mark he’s got is a fail,” Movistar boss Eusebio Unzué told AS in May.

He’s presumably regretting those words now, particularly as Mas has become the first Spanish winner of the Vuelta in 12 years.

“It was a long wait and a long way to today,” Mas said of his complex path, while also referring to his past performances in the race.

“But to be honest, it was always special Vueltas and this one I think is the special one.”

‘Like a win for me’

Mas is finally delivering on his potential while Roglič is coming from a completely different position.

He already won the race a record-equaling four times but hasn’t been in top shape since he won the Volta a Catalunya in April 2025.

Things were further complicated when he was hit by a car while building up to the race, putting serious doubt over his participation.

And while he ultimately lined out, his preparation had been seriously affected and he was still unable to walk properly and to sleep well at that point in time.

That’s probably why he was only 24th in the opening TT, normally a discipline he excels in. Ending up second overall three weeks later is, he said on Sunday, a big surprise for him.

“The result in the end is beautiful. Like it said, it is a win for me. But the approach to it was hard. First of all, with how I stepped into it in Monaco, I probably did it just because it was at home and I just wanted to start at home. I could never really expect to achieve this in the end.

“I did my best, the best together with the whole team. That meant second place. Big congrats to Enric and the whole Movistar team. They super deserved a victory. Victory is our second place today.”

The relatively narrow gap between himself and Mas at the end suggests that Roglič may have won overall had his preparation gone to plan. That will give him encouragement for the upcoming world championships, a race he could win if his form builds further as a result of his Vuelta participation.

Still, he recognizes that Pogačar leaving the race made his path to second overall easier.

“It was shit that Tadej crashed out. You don’t wish that to happen to no one,” he said. “For us that meant just we went one step up, or one number less for each of us, but it didn’t change the way of racing or approach at all for me.

“I did my best, we did our best with the team and that was the best we could achieve.”

‘Fantastic to see that I could repeat it’

It was, it could be argued, a better drama after Pogačar had to leave. As Roglič said, nobody welcomed his misfortune but the Vuelta did become more intriguing when the final outcome was less certain.

Gall kept the suspense alive with his strong attacks, being one of the very best climbers in the race. However his chances of winning overall took a blow when he finished way back in the stage 18 time trial, conceding almost a minute to Mas and even more to Roglič.

That dropped him from second to third overall, although he gave Roglič a scare on Saturday’s final mountains stage when he dropped both he and Mas on the final climb.

Already second overall to Jonas Vingegaard in the Giro d’Italia, the Austrian has gained a lot of confidence in the last few months.

“The big goal of the year was to be on a podium in a Grand Tour. The Giro went super well, and I was already able to achieve that there,” he said.

“I was hoping to do the same at the Vuelta, so it’s fantastic to see that I could repeat it.”

His result was, he said, due greatly to the commitment Decathlon CMA CGM gave him.

“When you fight for a podium, everyone needs to make sacrifices and fully commit to that objective. That’s exactly what happened over the last three weeks, and I’m extremely grateful for it.”

Gall is now 28, three years younger than Mas and eight and a half younger than Roglič.

His previous best Grand Tour result was fifth overall in the Tour de France, making second in the Giro and third in the Vuelta in the same year a solid step.

“I’ve been with the team for five years now, and I feel I’ve progressed every year,” he said. “Being able to make such a big step once again is incredibly rewarding.”

That put him in a fine mood, and so too the best team award his Decathlon team achieved.

Paul Seixas may be the big star of the Decathlon, but Gall continues to develop and improve, and so too does his squad.

Like Mas and Roglič, he too can take a lot of satisfaction from what has been achieved in this unpredictable, somewhat chaotic, often fascinating edition of the race.