Cycling
Primož Roglič seals another Grand Tour podium at La Vuelta
The four-time champion pushed Enric Mas deep into the final week of La Vuelta before securing second place overall in Granada.
Primož Roglič grabbed another Grand Tour podium for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe at La Vuelta 2026, finishing second overall after three weeks of racing across Spain.
Just weeks after teammate Remco Evenepoel rode home as runner-up at the Tour de France, the four-time Vuelta winner arrived in Granada 2m 15s behind eventual champion Enric Mas, with Felix Gall completing the podium in third.
"The result at the end is beautiful, it's a win for me," Roglič said to TNT Sports at the end of Stage 21. "The approach to it was hard, and I could never really expect to achieve this at the end."
Primož Roglič celebrates his second-place finish at the 2026 La Vuelta
© Tim de Waele/Getty Images
Overcoming a difficult road to La Vuelta
Despite having won the race four times before, Roglič entered this year's La Vuelta with few expectations of challenging for a fifth title. A training accident had disrupted his preparations and left the Slovenian without the ideal build-up, but he quickly put himself among the contenders for the overall win.
Patience was key for Roglič, and he kept himself in the fight as the race changed around him. By the final week, that approach had paid off and he was still within touching distance of the red jersey as he pushed Mas all the way to the final mountain stages.
How the battle for La Vuelta changed
The most pivotal moment of the race came during Stage 8, when leader and five-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar crashed out while wearing the red jersey. The race favourite's withdrawal suddenly opened up the battle for overall victory, with Mas eventually taking control on home soil as Roglič emerged as one of his closest challengers.
Although Mas kept him at arm's length, Roglič was still looking for an opportunity to close the gap heading into the final week – and it arrived with the individual time trial on Stage 18.
Roglič pushed hard to eventually finish runner-up to Enric Mas
© Tim de Waele/Getty Images
Roglič makes a last push for red
Roglič found another gear in the Stage 18 time trial, rolling home fourth to take 33 seconds out of Mas. Suddenly, he was just 1m 37s behind the Spaniard with the mountains still to come.
Spurred on by that progress, Roglič looked like a man on a mission the following day. With around two kilometres left on the final climb to Peñas Blancas, he made his move and went on the attack. Mas, however, was ready for everything the Slovenian had to throw at him and the pair eventually crossed the line together.
Victory is our second place today
There was still one last chance on Stage 20 in the Sierra Nevada, but this time Mas had the stronger legs. He pulled away from Roglič on the final climb to stretch his lead to 2m 15s, while Roglič in turn held off Gall to keep his grip on second place.
That left just one job on Sunday's final stage into Granada: finish it off and bring home another Grand Tour podium. Roglič crossed the line with second overall secured, bringing three demanding weeks of racing to an end with another strong result in the bag for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe.
"I did my best, together with the whole team," said Roglič. "Big congrats to Enric and the whole Movistar team, they super deserved the victory. Victory is our second place today."
