2026 is the “toughest Vuelta a España of my life,” according to Vuelta director Javier Guilén, and with an all-time maximum of 58,156 metres of vertical climbing, there can be no doubt that, on paper at least, the 81st edition of the Vuelta a España will be one of the most challenging editions ever.
But amidst the seven summit finishes, the near-unprecedented finale in Granada – only once before since the Vuelta’s first edition back in 1935 has the race ended so far south of its usual end-point in Madrid – and its third foreign start in as many years in Monaco, some stages stand out as likely being pivotal in the overall outcome.
Here is Cyclingnews’ take on what would well be the most important moments of a Vuelta in which Primož Roglič (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) is set to fight for a record-breaking fifth ever overall victory – and in the process, perhaps become the second oldest winner of any Grand Tour, too, since Chris Horner in the Vuelta back in 2013.
Tuesday August 25 – Stage 4: an early challenge
Andorra-Andorra (104km)
This short, punchy run through the mountainous mini-state of Andorra has a very similar feel and position to stage 4 of the 2017 Vuelta a España – and given the high drama that dominated that particular day’s racing, that’s not a bad thing at all. The build-up is all but identical as well: eight years ago, the Vuelta also began outside Spain, with a team time trial in Nimes in southern France, and just like the race will do in 2026, it then approached the first high mountain stage of the race from the eastern side of the Pyrenees.
We’ll already have had some kind of indication of the top riders’ state of form in the opening, technically challenging, time trial in Monaco on stage 1, as well as the first summit finish on the Cat.2 Fort de San Romeu, the previous day to the stage in Andorra. But as race route designer Fernando Escartín put it during the 2026 Vuelta’s presentation, the most likely outcome on stage 3 at San Romeu will be a mass uphill sprint between 30 or 40 riders, and unless a GC contender is in seriously poor form, few riders will have fallen by the wayside of the overall battle by this point.
Stage 4 should be another, very different, story. Not just because it’s got considerably more climbing metres, or because there is a long initial ascent up the Envalira to open up hostilities right from the gun, or even that because it’s so short, with three Cat.1 climbs and a Cat.3 in just over…
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