RACE REPORT: The Vuelta a España is anything but decided, with two seriously tough mountain stages still waiting in the wings. But after today’s 32.1-kilometre individual time trial from El Puerto de Santa María to Jerez de la Frontera, Enric Mas has to like the look of his chances.
The big question coming into Stage 18 was simple: could Primož Roglič put a serious dent in Mas’s red-jersey advantage?
La Vuelta a Espana 2026 Stage 18 Video Hilights
The answer was yes—but not nearly enough.
Roglič took 33 seconds out of Mas on the flat, fast course, but the Spanish race leader produced a ride that was considerably better than many expected. The result? Mas still leads the Vuelta by 1:37 with two mountain stages remaining.
Up front, meanwhile, Stefan Küng did what Stefan Küng does best: he went very, very fast against the clock.
The Swiss time-trial specialist stopped the clock fastest to take the stage win.
A fast course, and nowhere to hide
There wasn’t much climbing to get in the way of the specialists today. From El Puerto de Santa María, the riders headed 32.1 kilometres toward Jerez de la Frontera, with just 169 metres of elevation gain and intermediate time checks at 11.7 and 22.1 kilometres.
In other words, this was a day for the big engines.
For Roglič, it was an opportunity. For Mas, it was damage limitation.
And the first fireworks came early.
Thornley puts the hammer down
Mathias Norsgaard, last overall, was the first man down the start ramp. Nobody seriously expected the Dane to be fighting for the stage win, but the riders immediately following him provided plenty of interest.
Ethan Hayter was one of the early favourites, and the British time-trialist delivered a very respectable 35:55, averaging 53.6 km/h.
That looked like a time that might take some beating.
It didn’t.
Callum Thornley, another Brit, came flying into Jerez and knocked a full 30 seconds off Hayter’s time. His average speed was an eye-watering 54.4 km/h.
The 23-year-old Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe rider had already shown what he could do in the opening time trial in Monaco, where he finished fourth. Now he was sitting in the hot seat with a very real shot at a Vuelta stage victory.
But there were still some big names waiting to roll down the ramp.
Küng does what Küng does
Ivo Oliveira had been mentioned as an outside possibility before the start, but the Portuguese rider couldn’t quite match Thornley, finishing almost half a minute down.
Then came João Almeida.
Almeida may not have had the Vuelta he was hoping for so far, but he produced a seriously strong ride today. He finished just six seconds behind Thornley.
Suddenly, the stage was wide open.
Then Stefan Küng arrived.
The Swiss rider had been circling this time trial on his calendar for weeks, and it showed. He hit the first two intermediate checks fastest and kept the enormous gear turning all the way to Jerez.
Three seconds.
That’s all he had on Thornley at the finish.
Three seconds was enough.
Küng was the new leader, and Thornley’s impressive ride had finally been knocked off the top of the standings.
Van Aert comes close—but not close enough
The last real threat to Küng’s stage-winning time was Wout van Aert.
The Belgian started well and stayed within striking distance of Küng, but by the second time check he was already eight seconds behind the Swiss.
There was no miracle finish.
Van Aert crossed the line in fourth, 20 seconds behind Küng.
With the main time-trial specialists now safely across the line, attention turned to the riders who mattered most for the Vuelta itself.
Mas versus Roglič.
This was the race within the race.
Roglič starts fast
Roglič had one job: take time.
And at the first time check, he was doing exactly that.
The Slovenian was 21 seconds faster than Mas after 11.7 kilometres. For a moment, the possibility of a major shake-up in the overall classification suddenly looked very real.
But Mas wasn’t falling apart.
Quite the opposite.
The red-jersey wearer continued to ride with remarkable consistency, and whatever advantage Roglič had built early wasn’t turning into the kind of massive gap he needed.
Roglič kept gaining.
Mas kept limiting the damage.
And with every kilometre toward Jerez, the question became less about whether Roglič would gain time—and more about how much.
Roglič wins the battle, Mas wins the day
Roglič ultimately finished fourth on the stage, just 19 seconds behind Küng. That’s a very good time trial. But Mas?
Mas was better than expected. The Spaniard finished only 52 seconds behind Küng, staying comfortably inside the one-minute mark to the stage winner.
More importantly, he lost just 33 seconds to Roglič.
For a rider defending the red jersey against one of the world’s best time-trial riders, that’s a result that deserves a very big smile.
Roglič has reduced the deficit, but not by nearly enough to turn the Vuelta upside down.
Mas still leads by 1:37.
And now we get to the fun part.
Two brutally difficult mountain stages remain.
That 1:37 might look comfortable on paper. In the mountains, it can disappear very quickly.
But after today’s ride, Mas has every reason to believe that the red jersey really can make it all the way to Granada.
Küng gets the stage victory. Roglič gets some time back.
But the biggest winner of the day might just be Enric Mas.
PEZ’s Key Takeaway
Küng won the stage and Roglič won 33 seconds, but Mas may have been the day’s biggest winner. The red jersey faced one of the world’s best Grand Tour time-trial riders on terrain designed for pure power and kept his losses comfortably within manageable limits.
Roglič has moved back into second overall, but he remains 1:37 behind with only two mountain stages available to overturn the race. That is enough time to give Mas control, but not enough to let Movistar ride defensively. Roglič now has no reason to wait: he must attack, isolate Mas and force the Spaniard to respond under pressure.
Mas remains the clear favourite, but the time trial has set up exactly the finale the Vuelta needed – a confident Spanish leader against a four-time winner who must race aggressively.
La Vuelta a Espana 2026 Stage 18 Results
Read more Vuelta on PEZ:
1. Read our complete Vuelta a España 2026 preview here
2. See all the PEZ Vuelta Coverage here
The post Vuelta ’26 Stage 18: Küng Takes the TT, But Mas Wins the Bigger Battle appeared first on PezCycling News.
