A Mad Mads on the loose in Galicia
After his epic victory on the Angliru, which brought him closer to Jonas Vingegaard's red jersey, João Almeida watched Marc Soler launch a solo charge to win the 14th stage of the Vuelta. The Portuguese cyclist lost two seconds to the lead in the general classification and, after crossing the finish line in third place, made no secret of the fact that he needed the Spaniard's help in the final effort.
"The plan wasn't to have Marc in the breakaway, but we decided it would be a good idea. With the headwind, I might have missed him later. But we have nothing to lose; we tried to go for the win and gave it our all. Vingegaard is super strong. I'm already happy to have been able to stay on his tail," explained João Almeida, with Marc Soler himself confirming that the victory was a surprise.
"I didn't expect it, it wasn't my intention to be in the breakaway. I was thinking about working for Almeida, and these circumstances arose; I took off and was alone. I set my pace and realized I could maintain the gap. I knew that if João attacked or left Vingegaard, I would have to stop. But in the end, I was able to finish first. Everything was for him, for João. But it was a huge breakaway; [Victor] Campenaerts took off, I followed him, and from there I knew how to move and then finish," said the Spanish cyclist, confirming that UAE Emirates' recommendations for the remainder of the Vuelta are linked to almost unconditional support for the Portuguese rider.
The Vuelta returned to the road this Sunday, before the second day off on Monday, with 167.8 kilometers between A Veiga and Monforte de Lemos, one first-category mountain stage and one second-category stage, but no categorized mountains despite a somewhat uneven course. Jay Vine and Louis Vervaeke broke away early on, with João Almeida and Jonas Vingegaard maintaining the lead of the peloton, somewhat behind a chasing group that included Mads Pedersen.
????- 83 km | Stage 1️⃣5️⃣ – Stage 1️⃣5️⃣
???? Vine and Vervaeke lead the race with a 2'30" advantage over the rest of the breakaway group and 10'45" over the peloton
???? Vine and Vervaeke ride on the head with 2'30" on the rest of the fugitives and 10'45" with the peloton
#LaVuelta25 pic.twitter.com/LZuqR2brzY
— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) September 7, 2025
????- 50 km | Stage 1️⃣5️⃣- Stage 1️⃣5️⃣ | #LaVuelta25
????[Breakaway | Fuga]????????♂️????♂️ Vine, Vervaeke ⏱️+ 2'30" 4️⃣4️⃣ Pedersen, Ciccone, Bernal, Kwiatkowski…⏱️+ 13'25"
????♂️????♂️????♂️????♂️ Pelotón pic.twitter.com/0ae3MCg5nz
— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) September 7, 2025
The leading duo was caught with just over six kilometers remaining, and both Mads Pedersen and Egan Bernal were quick to position themselves for the victory. The Dane ultimately triumphed in the sprint finish at Monforte de Lemos, despite only truly attacking in the final kilometer, finishing ahead of Orluis Aular and Marco Frigo, with Magnus Sheffield crashing on the final corner, and edging ever closer to turning the green jersey into a true victory in the points classification.
Ivo Oliveira was the best Portuguese rider of the day, crossing the finish line in 11th place, and the peloton arrived very late and around 13 minutes after Mads Pedersen won: João Almeida was 63rd, Jonas Vingegaard was 65th with Matteo Jorgenson between the two candidates for victory and the general classification of the Vuelta remained unchanged at the top, with the Portuguese still 48 seconds behind the Dane's lead.
????????? MAAAAAAAADS @Mads__Pedersen #LaVuelta25 pic.twitter.com/P3cOJPNuIU
— La Vuelta (@lavuelta) September 7, 2025
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