+34
Marco Brenner sprinted to victory in Stage 14 of the Vuelta a España, while leader Enric Mas extended his advantage by dropping Primoz Roglic on the final climb.
GERMAN MARCO BRENNER fought off Santiago Buitrago to claim a mountaintop victory from a long-range breakaway on stage 14 of the Vuelta a España on Saturday.
Overall leader Enric Mas extended his lead as he finished 25 seconds ahead of veteran four-time Vuelta winner Primoz Roglic, who slipped from second to third overall behind Felix Gall. Mas leads Gall by two minutes and six seconds with Roglic just four seconds back. Spain’s Carlos Rodriguez finished the stage third at the end of the 154.5 kilometre ride from Jaen to La Pandera and climbed into the top 10 overall.
Darren Rafferty finished 26th on Saturday and is 97th in the general classification, while Eddie Dunbar sits 37th overall after placing 56th on stage 14. A large early breakaway established a gap of more than seven minutes on the peloton, including Mas. With around 52km remaining, Kevin Vermaerke attacked to take a solo lead, which the American maintained until Georg Steinhauser caught him with 15km left.
The German left Vermaerke behind as he began the final climb up the Sierra de la Pandera as weekend crowds cheered on the riders. Guillaume Martin came across to join Steinhauser, followed by Mario Aparicio, opening up a gap of nearly a minute on the rest of the break. Buitrago and Brenner caught them with just over three kilometres remaining before forging ahead. Advertisement Buitrago attacked first, but Brenner came past him to claim victory.
Further down the slope, the red jersey-wearing Mas and Gall dropped Roglic and Richard Carapaz in the general classification battle. Roglic finished 25 seconds behind Mas and Gall, with Ecuadorian Carapaz, fourth overall, a further six seconds back. Tadej Pogačar .
Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Cycling superstar Tadej Pogačar was leading the race until a crash on stage eight forced him to abandon his bid to win a first Vuelta and become only the ninth man to complete the full set of Grand Tours. He underwent surgery on a fractured collarbone and confirmed on Saturday that his season was over. ”Of course, this isn’t the way I wanted my season to finish.
Right now, the most important thing is to recover properly and give my body the time it needs,” Pogačar said in a UAE Team Emirates-XRG statement. On Sunday’s 15th stage, the riders travel a winding 189.7km route from Palma del Rio to Cordoba. Organisers have reportedly shortened the distance due to extreme heat. Elsewhere, Dutch rider Noor Dekker has won stage four of the Rás na mBan in County Carlow.
The WV Breda Women’s Cycling star attacked with 10 kilometres to go and held on for victory ahead of Noémie Garnier and Olympia Norrid Mortensen. French rider Garnier’s second-place finish elevates her into the magenta jersey as overall race leader, taking over from stage three winner Silje Weitze Antvorskov, who finished seventh on Saturday’s stage. In the Cycling Ireland Points standings, Aoife O’Brien scored in both of today’s intermediate sprints to ensure she holds a commanding lead in the classification. – © AFP 2026
Vuelta A España Marco Brenner Enric Mas Primoz Roglic Cycling
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News: You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Aoife O’Brien Claims First Stage Win at Rás na mBan22-year-old Aoife O’Brien took the race lead after winning the 97km second stage of Rás na mBan in Gorey, leading an Irish clean sweep of the podium.
Read more »
Van Aert wins Vuelta stage as Mas holds overall leadBelgian rider Wout van Aert claimed his first stage win of the 2025 Vuelta a España after breaking clear with Aurelien Paret-Peintre on stage 13, while Enric Mas retained his overall advantage.
Read more »
Tadej Pogacar ends 2026 season early after Vuelta crashSlovenian star announces contract extension that will keep him at UAE Team Emirates-XRG until 2032 at least
Read more »
Garnier Seizes Rás na mBan Lead as Dekker Wins StageNoémie Garnier (Vendée Féminine RVC) moved into the overall lead of Rás na mBan by finishing second in the fourth stage, while Noor Dekker (WV Breda Women Cycling Team) secured the stage victory despite a late charge from Garnier. The French rider's strong climbing performance narrowed the gap to Dekker, earning her the turquoise jersey for the final day of the race.
Read more »