MONACO (Saturday, August 22, 2026) — Stage 1: Monaco to Monaco – Tadej Pogačar (UAE Emirates XRG) opened La Vuelta 26 with a victory and claimed the leader’s jersey for the first time in a Grand Tour. The Monaco resident used his knowledge of the terrain, explosive speed and technical skills to narrowly edge Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) in the opening individual time trial.
Both riders averaged 51.5 kph over the 9.4-kilometer course, finishing in 10 minutes, 57 seconds. Pogacar won by just 0.09 second for his 36th Grand Tour stage victory and fourth at La Vuelta. He finished ahead of three British riders, with Josh Tarling (Netcompany Ineos) fourth at 4 seconds and Callum Thornley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) fifth at 5 seconds.
Pogačar followed in the footsteps of fellow Slovenian Primoz Roglic, who won the opening individual time trial of La Vuelta in 2021. It was also the first time Pogačar had taken the overall lead of the Spanish Grand Tour.
For the seventh time in 81 editions, and the fourth time in five years, La Vuelta began outside Spain. After Lisbon in 1997 and 2024, Assen in 2009, Nimes in 2017, Utrecht in 2022 and Piemonte in 2025, Monaco became the latest foreign host. The Principality also became the first place to host the start of all three Grand Tours.
The 9.4-kilometer individual time trial echoed the Grand Depart of the 2009 Tour de France. Fabian Cancellara won that opening time trial and claimed the first Maillot Jaune. In 2026, the course passed several of Monaco’s most iconic landmarks, including sections associated with the annual Formula One Grand Prix.
First benchmarks
Diego Uriarte (Kern Pharma) started the action at 4:17 p.m. He was the first of 184 riders to start La Vuelta 26 and one of 61 riders making their debut in the Spanish Grand Tour.
Jordan Labrosse (Decathlon CMA CGM) used his power and technical skills to establish the first benchmark at 11:20. The French rider remained in the hot seat until teammate Sander De Pestel lowered the mark to 11:15. Great Britain’s Matthew Brennan then moved into the lead, with the rising Visma-Lease a Bike sprinter negotiating the corners to finish in 11:13.
Bisiaux, Thornley, Tarling among youngsters to rise
Technical ability and explosive speed became increasingly important as the times fell. Arthur Kluckers (Tudor) was 5 seconds faster than Brennan, but his mark did not last long. Oscar Chamberlain (Decathlon CMA CGM), a former junior individual time trial world champion and Monaco resident, lowered the time to 11:06.
Chamberlain held the lead for about 20 minutes before another Decathlon CMA CGM youngster, Léo Bisiaux, went 0.75 second faster.
Moments later, Scotland’s Callum Thornley (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) finished strongly to take the lead by 3 seconds.
The intensity increased when Josh Tarling (Netcompany Ineos) took the start. Widely regarded as one of the best time trialists in the field, Tarling had endured a difficult week after the death of his younger brother, Finlay Tarling, in a race accident. The family also announced the death of Tarling’s grandfather shortly before the start.
Despite the circumstances, Tarling delivered the fastest ride to that point, completing the course in 11:01 at an average speed of 51.2 kph.
Pogacar edged Hayter
Another British specialist then took the lead. Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step), the British individual time trial champion, became the first rider to complete the 9.4 kilometers in less than 11 minutes, stopping the clock at 10:57.
Three British riders occupied the top three positions, but Pogacar then produced the decisive performance. The Slovenian finished in 10:57, edging Hayter by 0.09 second to take the stage victory and the first La Roja of his career.
The victory was Pogačar’s fourth at La Vuelta and 36th in Grand Tour competition. He had never led a Grand Tour after the opening stage, having waited until Stage 2 to take the overall lead at both the 2024 Tour de France and 2024 Giro d’Italia.
Pogačar’s immediate goal was to carry La Roja all the way to Granada three weeks later.
Stage 1 Results and General Classification:
| 1 | T. POGACAR | UAE TEAM EMIRATES XRG | 00h 10′ 57” | – | – | – |
| 2 | E. HAYTER | SOUDAL QUICK-STEP | 00h 10′ 57” | – | – | – |
| 3 | J. TARLING | NETCOMPANY INEOS CYCLING TEAM | 00h 11′ 01” | + 00h 00′ 04” | – | – |
| 4 | C. THORNLEY | RED BULL – BORA – HANSGROHE | 00h 11′ 02” | + 00h 00′ 05” | – | – |
| 5 | C. LAPORTE | TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE | 00h 11′ 03” | + 00h 00′ 06” | – | – |
| 6 | L. BISIAUX | DECATHLON CMA CGM TEAM | 00h 11′ 05” | + 00h 00′ 08” | – | – |
| 7 | A. CHAMBERLAIN | DECATHLON CMA CGM TEAM | 00h 11′ 06” | + 00h 00′ 09” | – | – |
| 8 | W. VAN AERT | TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE | 00h 11′ 06” | + 00h 00′ 09” | – | – |
| 9 | F. FISHER – BLACK | RED BULL – BORA – HANSGROHE | 00h 11′ 07” | + 00h 00′ 10” | – | – |
| 10 | A. KLUCKERS | TUDOR PRO CYCLING TEAM | 00h 11′ 08” | + 00h 00′ 11” | – | – |
