Tadej Pogacar won stage six of the Vuelta a Espana in Castellon on Thursday after beating Enric Mas in a head-to-head sprint finish.
The UAE Team Emirates rider launched a late attack on the steep dirt tracks of the Bartolo climb before holding off a surprise comeback from the Movistar team leader.
Pogacar crossed the line ahead of Mas after the pair distanced their general classification rivals over the final mountain section and shared work on the flat roads into Castellon.
The Vuelta a Espana is the final Grand Tour of the European road cycling season, covering three weeks of racing across Spain alongside the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia. Pogacar, a multi-time Tour de France champion, entered the stage as the race favorite, while Mas is Spain's premier general classification contender and a three-time Vuelta runner-up.
Breakaway chase and UAE team strategy
UAE Team Emirates originally intended to allow the early breakaway group to stay clear and contest the stage victory. However, the breakaway organized late in the stage and failed to build a decisive lead over the main peloton.
Seeing an opportunity for a stage win, Pogacar instructed his team to set a high pace. Australian rider Jay Vine pulled at the front first to reduce the breakaway's advantage, before young Spanish teammate Pablo Torres took over pacemaking duties on the lower slopes of the mountain.
Pogacar expressed his gratitude to Torres after the finish, noting that the young Spaniard set aside his own general classification ambitions and personal chances to work for his team leader. Torres drove a furious tempo that brought Pogacar into position to launch his decisive move.
The stage finished in Castellon, a coastal provincial capital in eastern Spain's Valencian Community, after climbing the Alto del Bartolo in the nearby mountain range. The mountain climb features two kilometers of unpaved dirt and gravel tracks leading to the summit, creating unpredictable conditions for the riders.
Surprise attack on the unpaved slopes
Pogacar launched his attack on the unpaved sandy section of the Bartolo climb, quickly leaving the rest of the field behind. Team radio informed Pogacar that he had built a 40-second advantage over his pursuers, but the radio report did not mention Mas by name.
Mas mounted an unexpected chase on the steep gradients, rapidly closing the gap on the Slovenian. Pogacar said he was surprised when Mas drew alongside him and passed him on the right side like a rocket.
Mas caught Pogacar right at the summit of Bartolo, which offered bonus seconds toward the general classification standings. Mas explained after the stage that his Movistar team car pushed him from behind to sprint for the time bonus.
The battle at the top of the climb mirrored their duel at the 2022 Tour de Romandie stage race in Switzerland, where Mas and Pogacar also fought directly for a stage victory. Pogacar emerged victorious in that encounter as well.
Dangerous descent and near crash
Mas took the lead at the start of the steep and technical descent from Bartolo. The Spanish rider signaled to Pogacar and warned him to reduce his speed as they approached several dangerous curves.
Pogacar preferred not to ride behind another cyclist and took advantage of a momentary hesitation by Mas to pass him on the inside of a curve. Shortly after taking the lead, Pogacar ran off the road on a section covered in dirty concrete.
Despite running off the asphalt, Pogacar managed to control his bike without unclipping his shoes or losing his footing. Mas noted after the stage that the concrete patch was dirty and unusual for road cyclists, but added that Pogacar rejoined his rear wheel almost immediately.
Pogacar admitted after the finish that the descent was extremely steep and hazardous. He explained that the steep gradient made it difficult to follow ideal cornering lines and required heavy braking, adding that he was happy to escape a dangerous crash.
Chasing group and final sprint
Behind the lead duo, rival general classification contenders organized to minimize their time losses. The gap between the front two and the pursuers dropped to 14 seconds before widening again on the lower slopes.
Slovenian rider Primoz Roglic, Austrian climber Felix Gall, and Leo Debruyne initially spearheaded the pursuit. Ecuadorian rider Richard Carapaz and Colombian climber Harold Tejada later bridged the gap to join Roglic, Gall, and Debruyne in the chase.
Throughout the difficult mountain stage, Spanish professional team Kern Pharma also fought hard against the tide to keep their riders in contention. Once on the flat terrain leading into Castellon, Mas worked alongside Pogacar to share pacemaking duties, despite flat roads not being his preferred terrain.
The two leaders entered Castellon together, where Pogacar out-sprinted Mas to secure the stage win. Reflecting on the finish, Pogacar said that while a sprint victory delivers a bigger rush of adrenaline, riding solo for 30 minutes with a guaranteed win is always preferable, concluding that he enjoyed finding an unexpected companion in Mas.
