The Slovenian cyclist finished the 104.8km mountainous route from and to Andorra la Vella in two hours 40 minutes 35 seconds. He crossed the line two minutes 39 seconds clear of nearest rivals Jarno Widar and Felix Gall according to official results released by race organisers. This marked the largest margin of victory in Pogačar’s Grand Tour career and his second stage success in this edition of the Spanish race after the opening time trial. Pogačar now holds the red jersey with an overall time of seven hours 38 minutes 59 seconds.
BBC Sport reported that the 27-year-old attacked on the Collada de Beixalis climb with 50km to go after a fast start to the stage. He built a lead of 90 seconds during the descent and then time trialled alone to the finish line in Andorra la Vella. The effort surpassed his previous longest solo break in a Grand Tour which came on the Col du Tourmalet in the Tour de France last month. The publication noted that stage three had been abandoned because of hail in the Pyrenees.
Pogačar described the day as beautiful in post-stage interviews. “It’s super good because now I can be calm and confident for the next days,” he said. “We just keep going day by day and focus on each day after this because it will be a little bit less stressful for sure.” The world champion also recalled positive memories from his previous racing in Andorra during his first Vuelta appearance in 2019.
According to a release from UAE Team Emirates-XRG the victory has given the squad a firm grip on the general classification. Team director Joxean Fernández Matxin told reporters that Pogačar had made a big statement but emphasised the race remains long with much still to come. The squad has targeted stage wins throughout the event and succeeded in preventing any significant breakaway earlier in the day.
Historical data from Procycling Stats shows this is the latest in a series of stage victories for UAE Team Emirates-XRG at the Vuelta with the team securing multiple wins in recent editions. Pogačar himself won three stages during his 2019 participation in the race. The current lead positions him strongly to become only the fourth rider to win the Tour de France and Vuelta in the same season.
The general classification now has Primož Roglič in second place at three minutes 21 seconds back with Enric Mas third a further 11 seconds behind the Slovenian as official standings indicate. Several other riders trail by between three and four minutes including Sepp Kuss and Oscar Onley. Stage five on August 26 is a 173.3km hilly stage from Falset to Roquetes that could provide an opportunity for sprinters before further mountain tests.
