Pogacar Outsprints Mas in Castelló for Third Stage Win of La Vuelta 26
ALCOSSEBRE > CASTELLÓ (August 27, 2026) – Tadej Pogacar got the better of Enric Mas (Movistar) in Castelló to claim his third stage victory of La Vuelta 26. The Slovenian superstar matched his 2019 tally, when he stunned the cycling world with an impressive Grand Tour debut in Spain.
This year, however, Pogacar had been far more dominant. He had worn La Roja from the opening day after winning the first stage in Monaco. In 2019, his first Grand Tour victory came on Stage 9 and his third on Stage 20. This time, he had won three of the first six stages, a feat that had not been achieved since Oscar Freire in 2007.
Pogacar appeared headed for another spectacular solo victory after dropping the field with 24 kilometers remaining. But Mas emerged from the chase and caught him just before the final summit. The two strongest climbers of the day then worked together toward the finish, despite a scare for Pogacar on the final descent when he missed a turn and briefly went off the road.
The Slovenian quickly recovered and rejoined Mas. The pair held off the chase to the final kilometer, where Pogacar produced the stronger finishing kick to take the stage and strengthen his hold on La Roja.
Mas moved into second overall, 3 minutes, 34 seconds behind Pogacar. Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) was third overall at 4:21.
A Fresh Set of Climbing Challenges
After Matthew Brennan claimed his second sprint victory in Roquetes, the peloton faced a much different challenge on Stage 6, traveling 177.5 kilometers from Alcossebre to Castelló with 3,094 meters of elevation gain.
The route included four categorized climbs, highlighted by the Category 1 Puerto El Bartolo. The final climb also featured a 1.9-kilometer gravel section and gradients reaching 20 percent. It presented attackers with an early opportunity to challenge the peloton.
A Demanding Battle for the Breakaway
The opening portion of the stage was marked by a flurry of attacks. Alexey Lutsenko (NSN), the winner in Alcossebre in La Vuelta 17, made an early move at kilometer 16. Lutsenko, who had confirmed that this would be his final season before retirement, was joined by one of the youngest riders in the race, France’s Léo Bisiaux (Decathlon CMA CGM).
Walter Calzoni (Pinarello Q36.5) eventually bridged to the pair, but the peloton quickly brought the trio back at kilometer 33.
The first climb, the Category 2 Puerto de la Serratella, did not produce a successful breakaway. On the Category 3 Coll de la Bandereta, George Bennett (NSN), Andreas Kron (Uno-X Mobility) and Gijs Leemreize (Picnic PostNL) opened a gap. Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) bridged to them just before the summit.
The breakaway finally took shape in the following valley when 12 more riders joined the leaders: Carlos Canal (Movistar), Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike), Thomas Gloag (Pinarello Q36.5), Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious), Patrick Konrad (Lidl-Trek), Ramses Debruyne (Alpecin-Premier Tech), Gianmarco Garofoli (Soudal Quick-Step), Vincenzo Albanese (EF Education-EasyPost), Hannes Wilksch (Tudor), José Manuel Diaz (Burgos Burpellet BH), Lars Craps (Lotto Intermarché) and Urko Berrade (Kern Pharma).
Mas Caught Pogacar on the Final Climb
Debruyne represented the biggest overall threat in the breakaway. The Belgian youngster had started the day 12th overall, 4:44 behind Pogacar.
UAE Emirates XRG controlled the pace in the peloton, keeping the breakaway within 2:40. On the Category 2 Alto del Desierto de las Palmas, Van Aert was dropped from the breakaway after earlier taking 20 points at the intermediate sprint at kilometer 120.1.
The decisive action came on the final ascent of Puerto El Bartolo. Debruyne set the pace among the breakaway riders and entered the gravel section alone. Behind him, Pogacar accelerated away from the chase group.
The Slovenian caught and dropped Debruyne three kilometers from the summit, appearing set for another long solo effort. But Mas had other ideas. The Movistar rider emerged from the chase group and caught Pogacar just before the summit.
The leading pair began the descent with a 30-second advantage over Roglic, Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) and Debruyne.
Pogacar Takes the Final Sprint
Pogacar had a scare on the descent when he missed a turn and went off the road. Fortunately for the race leader, it was only a brief scare. He quickly regained the road and rejoined Mas.
With 10 kilometers remaining, the three chasers had reduced the gap to 15 seconds. Behind them, Oscar Onley (Netcompany Ineos) was losing more than a minute.
Mas and Pogacar continued to collaborate through the final kilometers. The three chasers were eventually caught by Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost) and Harold Tejada (XDS Astana).
At the finish, Pogacar proved to be the faster of the two leaders, outsprinting Mas for his third stage victory of La Vuelta 26 and further strengthening his grip on La Roja.
Debruyne finished third, 46 seconds behind the winner.
Stage 6 Results:
| 1 | T. POGACAR | UAE TEAM EMIRATES XRG | 04h 12′ 40” | – | B : 14” | – |
| 2 | E. MAS | MOVISTAR TEAM | 04h 12′ 40” | – | B : 12” | – |
| 3 | R. DEBRUYNE | ALPECIN-PREMIER TECH | 04h 13′ 26” | + 00h 00′ 46” | B : 4” | – |
| 4 | R. CARAPAZ | EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST | 04h 13′ 26” | + 00h 00′ 46” | – | – |
| 5 | H. TEJADA | XDS ASTANA TEAM | 04h 13′ 26” | + 00h 00′ 46” | – | – |
| 6 | F. GALL | DECATHLON CMA CGM TEAM | 04h 13′ 26” | + 00h 00′ 46” | B : 2” | – |
| 7 | P. ROGLIC | RED BULL – BORA – HANSGROHE | 04h 13′ 26” | + 00h 00′ 46” | – | – |
| 8 | C. RODRIGUEZ | XDS ASTANA TEAM | 04h 14′ 18” | + 00h 01′ 38” | – | – |
| 9 | C. BERTHET | GROUPAMA-FDJ UNITED | 04h 14′ 18” | + 00h 01′ 38” | – | – |
| 10 | M. SKJELMOSE | LIDL-TREK | 04h 14′ 18” | + 00h 01′ 38” | – |
General Classification after Stage 6:
| 1 | T. POGACAR | UAE TEAM EMIRATES XRG | 15h 38′ 27” | – | B : 34” | – |
| 2 | E. MAS | MOVISTAR TEAM | 15h 42′ 01” | + 00h 03′ 34” | B : 12” | – |
| 3 | P. ROGLIC | RED BULL – BORA – HANSGROHE | 15h 42′ 48” | + 00h 04′ 21” | – | – |
| 4 | R. CARAPAZ | EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST | 15h 43′ 17” | + 00h 04′ 50” | – | – |
| 5 | F. GALL | DECATHLON CMA CGM TEAM | 15h 43′ 22” | + 00h 04′ 55” | B : 8” | – |
| 6 | S. KUSS | TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE | 15h 44′ 03” | + 00h 05′ 36” | – | – |
| 7 | O. ONLEY | NETCOMPANY INEOS CYCLING TEAM | 15h 44′ 04” | + 00h 05′ 37” | B : 4” | – |
| 8 | R. DEBRUYNE | ALPECIN-PREMIER TECH | 15h 44′ 07” | + 00h 05′ 40” | B : 4” | – |
| 9 | M. SKJELMOSE | LIDL-TREK | 15h 44′ 25” | + 00h 05′ 58” | – | – |
| 10 | H. TEJADA | XDS ASTANA TEAM | 15h 44′ 57” | + 00h 06′ 30” | – | – |
