Vuelta a España stage 1 LIVE: Tadej Pogačar and Wout van Aert take part in Monaco time trial Gran Partida
Monaco to Monaco (ITT), 9.4 km
Sepp Kuss has just finished, 22 seconds with the 13th fastest ride. That didn't appear to be a ride from someone going as hard as possible to limit his losses, but nor did he sit up and take it easy.
The 2023 champion has said that is prioritising chasing stage wins over the GC, but that ride suggests he isn't totally sacrificing the former just yet.
Labrosse’s time is safe for now, with nobody threatening it at the intermediate time check.
While there’s a slight lull in what has been a hectic start, be sure to catch up on what’s happened at both the Renewi Tour and Tour of Britain Women, both of which have finished.
Richard Carapaz has finished his ride, and it looks pretty solid. He's third fastest, with a time ten seconds slower than Labrosse. We'll have a much better idea of how good it is later on, once the other non-time trial specialist GC riders start their rides.
A couple of other such rider have just rolled off the start ramp - Matthew Riccitello, and former winner Sepp Kuss. Unlike Carapaz, they are only outside contenders, and may not go hard today if they're not targetting it.
NEW FASTEST TIME - LABROSSE
Another new leader is in the clubhouse, and this time by a big margin, as 23-year-old Jordan Labrosse (pictured) bests Norsgaard by a whole 16 seconds. That's a mighty impressive ride, but even he was challenged moments later as sprinter Aulaur came within a second of beating him at the finish.
NEW FASTEST TIME - MATHIAS SUNEKAER NORSGAARD
A Norwegian has been usurped by a Dane! Lidl's Norsgaard pips Leknessund's time by a mere second, after Kaden Groves had himself fallen just one second short.
Meanwhile at the start, the first major GC contender has just began - Richard Carapaz. After his star attacking turn at the Tour de France, he's stated his intent to commit fully to GC at this race, so will go hard to concede as little time as possible.
NEW FASTEST TIME - LEKNESSUND
Uriarte’s time has indeed been beaten, by three riders in quick succession - Beloki, Porter, then Leknessund, who has gone quicker by a whole nine seconds.
He might have faced some stiff competition from Bruno Armirail, one of the few time trial specialists who have set off early, but the Frenchman’s hopes have been dashed by a mechanical.
After taking off first, Diego Uriarte (pictured) has the fastest time at the finish, and none of the five riders who have joined him at the clubhouse so far have manage to better him. But his time is under threat by Andreas Leknessund, who is quicker than him at the intermediate check.
Kaden Groves is the latest to start. The Australian is on a mission to win what would be a third points classification at this race. But he's unlikely to score any points today. The time trial might be short, but not quite short enough for a sprinter like himself.
There are no real curve balls in the running order, with most of the top riders not setting off until later in the day. But there is one man already out that's worth keeping an eye on - Markel Beloki. As the son of Joseba, he has the genes, and based on some of his performances since turning pro, he has the talent too.
OFFICIAL START
The first rider is Diego Uriarte, and he rolls down the start ramp to get this year's Vuelta a España underway!
In terms of the stage win today, there’s very healthy competition among some quality time trialists all vying for the honor of wearing the red jersey. Pogačar is inevitably a contender, but will be up against specialists like Wout van Aert and Josh Tarling. Here’s the full running order of the day.
Pogačar and the other GC contenders’ quest for the red jersey begins with a short, flat, but technical time trial in Monaco. It’s not long enough to cause especially big gaps between the GC contenders, but there’s been much talk about the tricky corners - anyone wanting a high GC finish will have to be careful not to make a mistake.
Vuelta a España 2026 stage 1 preview
It’s time at last for the Vuelta a España, the final Grand Tour of the season! After all the thrills of the Tour de France in July and Tour de France Femmes in August, the attention of the cycling world now turns to Spain.
Much like in France, it’s the same man who is hogging all of the attention - Tadej Pogačar The Slovenian is going into this race as even more of a favourite than he was for the Tour, and the world is braced for another special performance from him. Pogačar himself, though, is stressing the need to approach intelligently, and not take things for granted.
Hola and welcome to stage one of the 2026 Vuelta a España!
