2026 Vuelta a España: Preview of Stage 20: Will the new mountain stage also mark Mas’s debut?

​Key information on Stage 20 of the 2026 Vuelta a España

• Saturday, 12 September: La Calahorra – Collado del Alguacil
• 186.8 kilometres, 4,890 metres of elevation gain (mountain finish)
• Mountain classifications: KM 50.7 (Category 3), KM 94.3 (Category 1), KM 125.5 (Category 1), KM 155.4 (Category 1), KM 186.8 (ESP)
• Intermediate sprint: KM 144
• Bonus sprint: 155.4 km
• Start: 12.30 pm, Finish: approx. 5.16 pm
• Live updates and results

The route of the 20th stage of the Tour of Spain

Whether it’s the queen stage or simply another extremely tough one in this Vuelta: the penultimate stage of the tour through the Sierra Nevada will once again push the general classification contenders to their limits with 4,900. The day – which, for the first time in the race’s history, begins in La Calahorra – doesn’t really get going until after 80 kilometres. That’s because the first part of the stage features many kilometres of downhill riding, followed in contrast by just a small mountain classification (3rd category), with an average gradient of less than four per cent – a gentle warm-up.

But then, with Granada – the Vuelta’s finish line a day later – having just been finalised, things are getting serious. On a circuit that was, in part, devised out of necessity, the Puerto de El Purche (Category 1) will initially be climbed twice. Until early August, it had actually only been scheduled once. However, the route planners had to abandon their original idea. Back in February, a landslide had damaged the access roads to the Alto de Hazallanas, which had actually been scheduled to be climbed twice. As not all the problems had been resolved even shortly before the Vuelta, it has now been scrapped.

To make up for this, there is now a double ascent of El Purche. And because one additional mountain cannot replace the two that have been dropped, the Puerto de El Duque (Category 1) has been added to the route. It is a brand-new inclusion. It will be tackled for the first time in the Vuelta. The stage over El Duque follows on from that of El Purche to the east. This means that one section of the route will actually be ridden three times.

The two mountains are quite similar in terms of both length and gradient. With an average gradient of just over eight per cent, the Purche is, however, slightly longer at a good eight kilometres. It also features a short descent in the profile just before the summit.

After the triple, the riders leave the circuit and turn onto the final stretch leading up to the Collado del Alguacil (Special Category). Not only is this climb a first for the Vuelta, but it has never before featured in a race in the entire history of professional cycling. And the Alguacil certainly deserves its special category status. Over the course of just over eight kilometres, the average gradient is only briefly below nine per cent at the very start. On average, it is ten per cent – with peaks of up to 22 per cent.

A sporting analysis of Stage 20 of the 2026 Vuelta a España

Primož Roglič (Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe) had tried his luck the day before, whilst Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM) had made several attempts across a number of stages during the second week of the race. The result was always the same: Enric Mas (Movistar Team) fended off all attacks on the red jersey with a confidence that the Spaniard had not previously shown. So now, on the final, gruelling stage of the Vuelta, his true test awaits.

As well as his legs, the nerves of this professional – who has so far been known as the “eternal runner-up” – will also need to hold up. Gall and Roglic are sure to launch further attacks. The Austrian, in particular, should be well suited to the truly steep final climb. Under normal circumstances, however, he will certainly not be able to make up three minutes. It’s also hard to imagine that Roglic would manage to make up half of that gap. And it would take not just that, but even a little more, to win the Vuelta for the fifth time.

It is far more likely that Mas is in for another relatively quiet day. Once again, the stage win will be out of the question for the favourites, as none of them have the team to chase down a breakaway group. This has been the case in previous mountain stages.

And Gall and Roglic will be keeping a close eye on each other, so Mas really just needs to stay on their wheels. Gall is unlikely to take any risks, as third place – or possibly second – would be the Austrian’s greatest career achievement to date, alongside his podium finish at this year’s Giro.

It’s more likely that Roglic might go for broke. Driven by the desperation of the situation, the 36-year-old might just give it a go and, for the chance of the red jersey, perhaps even risk second place or more, because for the Slovenian, only victories count now. Ultimately, it’s likely to be a question of his legs that might prevent such an endeavour if push comes to shove.