Tadej Pogačar has taken control of the Vuelta a España far earlier than his rivals would have wanted. The Slovenian launched a long range attack on stage four and completed almost 50 kilometres alone before winning in Andorra la Vella. By the finish, a difficult mountain stage had become a demonstration of his superiority.
The attack comes from distance
According to The Guardian’s stage report, Pogačar made his decisive move on the road towards the Collada de Beixalis. The red jersey quickly separated himself from a chasing group containing Primož Roglič, Enric Mas, Richard Carapaz, Felix Gall and Oscar Onley. His advantage had already reached one minute and 30 seconds when he crossed the summit.
The 104.8 kilometre stage contained several demanding climbs and offered little opportunity to recover. Pogačar began the final ascent with a lead of three minutes and 12 seconds before controlling the remaining kilometres. He crossed the line after two hours, 40 minutes and 35 seconds.
Jarno Widar won the sprint for second place, finishing two minutes and 39 seconds behind the stage winner. Gall took third after being unable to follow Pogačar’s initial acceleration for long. None of the other general classification contenders found an effective response once the Slovenian had established his rhythm.
Read also: Infantino under mounting pressure as decisive FIFA deadline approaches
The overall gaps become serious
The time differences were confirmed by La Vuelta’s official stage classification. Pogačar now leads fellow Slovenian Roglič by three minutes and 21 seconds in the general classification. Mas sits another 11 seconds behind in third place, while Denmark’s Mattias Skjelmose is eighth at four minutes and six seconds.
Those gaps do not decide a Grand Tour after only four stages, but they completely change the responsibilities within the race. Pogačar can now choose when to defend and when to attack, while every rival must find opportunities to recover several minutes. Teams that hoped to wait until the final week have already been forced to reconsider their plans.
After the stage, Pogačar said: “It’s super good because now I can be calm and confident for the next days.” He explained that he attacked because he did not want to become isolated against all the other contenders. Once the gap opened, he committed fully despite admitting that the solo effort had been difficult.
The missing trophy moves closer
Pogačar entered the race attempting to win the only Grand Tour missing from his collection. He has already won the Tour de France five times and claimed the Giro d’Italia, but has only previously ridden the Vuelta in 2019. There are still 17 stages remaining, yet his rivals are already chasing both the red jersey and an enormous early deficit.
Read also: Juventus are ready to let one of their own leave
Read also: Ange Postecoglou breaks silence after furious Cristiano Ronaldo tantrum
