Week 3 drama: Vingegaard’s lead is slim, Almeida’s growing, Pidcock fights for the podium, Kuss is back and Madrid isn’t a guarantee.
Increasing protests have cast a pall of uncertainty over the Vuelta going into the final week. (Photo: MIGUEL RIOPA/AFP via Getty Images)
Updated September 8, 2025 07:14AM
The 2025 Vuelta a España enters its final week with both the final podium and the atmosphere around the Spanish grand tour hanging in the balance.
On the bike, things are stacking up like any wild Vuelta entering the final week with everything still up for grabs.
Jonas Vingegaard holds red by just 48 seconds, but João Almeida is making things complicated.
At the top of the table, there are big questions whether UAE Emirates-XRG’s stage-hunting tactical tilt can deliver red and if Visma-Lease a Bike can finish off the job.
Deeper in the top 10, Tom Pidcock is surprising everyone in a fight for the final podium, and Sepp Kuss is proving he’s back at his best.
With one week to go, all outcomes are still on the table.
All of that is part of the narrative of any normal Vuelta entering the third week.
What’s different in this Vuelta is what’s happening off the bike.
Protests against Israel-Premier Tech continue to boil and are spilling out onto the road with intensity.
Riders are on edge after protesters are disrupting stages, and now many are raising questions about whether the race will even make it to Madrid on Sunday.
A lot can happen with six stages left to go. Let’s dive in:
1. Vingegaard leads but is it enough?
Vingegaard carries red into the Vuelta’s final week. (Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Jonas Vingegaard carries the red jersey into the final week, but at just 48 seconds, things are tighter than anyone could have expected.
For a rider who typically dominates the high mountains, it’s striking that most of his GC advantages came in the transitional stages in Bilbao and Valdezcaray.
Visma-Lease a Bike has deployed a more calculated and measured race at the opening of the Vuelta in part to save the team for the final half.
The Dane has avoided crashes and other setbacks, but Almeida is staying close. Could that backfire in the final week?
There are a few traps, especially in Galicia, but “Vingo” is sounding confident with two more decisive summit finales and a relatively long individual time trial still on the books.
The advantage of carrying red into week 3 is obvious; it’s always better to defend than to chase. But anyone who’s watched the Vuelta knows things can flip in its final days.
“To have 48 seconds, that’s something I earned and I am happy with it, we just have to see if we can keep the jersey until Madrid,” Vingegaard said Sunday. “I’m super satisfied with how the Vuelta has gone so far, two stage wins, and I can’t even remember how many days in the red jersey anymore.”
2. Almeida can still win, but it won’t be easy
Almeida is closer than ever to a grand tour win . (Photo by Dario Belingheri/Getty Images)
Almeida appears to be getting stronger as the race unfolds. The Portuguese star is scrolling the race book in the final week, looking for where he can chip into Vingegaard’s lead.
If you look at the profiles, three key days should decide this Vuelta.
Almeida’s big chance may come on Wednesday’s summit finish to El Morredero, a climb long enough and steep enough to drive the wedge. Almeida needs to try to gap Vingegaard, gain the winner’s 10-second time bonus, and suddenly that lead could be cut into half.
The 27.3km individual time trial on Thursday is a typical week-three race against the clock, and it favors whoever has the strongest legs. Almeida is certainly no hack against the clock and he could take time on Vingegaard if he’s on a great day.
The GC could all come down to Bola del Mundo, another one of the Vuelta’s “impossible” climbs.
It’s so steep at the top that it’s hard to carry too much speed. It’s really more of a race off the back in the sense that if someone is buckling on a bad day, things can unravel relatively quickly.
The jury is still out on if UAE’s stage-hunting frenzy can deliver the win for Almeida.
“Joao is getting stronger as this Vuelta progresses, and we believe he can win. Of course, we need to attack and Visma is very strong, but we see a very determined Joao right now. A strong time trial will put him even closer. It’s not over yet,” UAE teammate Ivo Oliveira said Sunday.
3. Pidcock is impressive, but can he hold the podium?
Pidcock and Hindley are in a dogfight for the podium. (Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Tom Pidcock is the big revelation of this Vuelta, and the fact that he’s hanging in third place going into the final week.
Quite a few were skeptical of Pidcock’s GC credentials, but he’s been holding his own against some pretty big names who are all now in a scrapping fight for the final spot on the podium. The most direct threat is Jay Hindley and Felix Gall.
Pidcock suffered at Angliru and again at Farrapona on Saturday, but the psychological boost after defending third place to carry the virtual podium into week 3 will do him wonders.
Thursday’s time trial could be his undoing. At this point, a top five would be validation of “Project Pidcock,” but a podium would be absolutely huge.
“I lost a bit more time, but I think I’m getting better and better at these longer efforts,” Pidcock said Saturday. “This is definitely the thing that I struggle with the most … but the thing I can improve the most in, and this year I have improved massively, but obviously there’s still a lot more.”
4. ‘GC Kuss’ is back, will there be a stage win?
Kuss is back at his best and climbed into the top 10 after pacing Vingegaard across Asturias. (Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
The Americans are shining during this Vuelta, with Matthew Riccitello battling for a top 5, Matteo Jorgenson hanging around the top 10 while doing huge pulls for Vingegaard. Sean Quinn, Kevin Vermaerke, and Magnus Sheffield have been attacking relentlessly to chase a stage win.
But it’s the smiling face of the Durango Kid that’s lighting up this Vuelta.
Kuss struggled with health problems as well as with the pressure that came with being a grand tour winner, and last year he missed the Tour de France with illness and was off his best in the title defense at the 2024 Vuelta.
He’s back at his climbing best in this Vuelta, slowly ticking up the GC without really even targeting it. He’s following the proven Kuss blueprint of pulling for Vingegaard and then following in the wheels, and he naturally is moving up on GC.
A stage win could still be in the cards, but with Almeida and the unpredictability of UAE, his first responsibility will be chaperoning Vingegaard to Madrid in red.
“You have to play the numbers on the team and be ready for any situation,” Kuss told Velo. “I feel good. It took a while to get to the real steep Vuelta climbs. There’s still a long way to go, and hopefully the good feelings stay.”
5. Will the Vuelta even make it to Madrid?
Police attempt to hold back protesters during Sunday’s stage. (Photo: Carlos Castro/Europa Press via Getty Images)
The biggest unknown of this Vuelta isn’t the GC, but whether the race itself will make it to Madrid.
After being relatively quiet on Wednesday and Thursday, demonstrations reared their head back up again Sunday, with protesters trying to disrupt the race on a few occasions.
Javier Romo and a rider from Soudal-Quick Step crashed Sunday after a police officer moved to stop a protester trying to charge into the road, provoking a reaction in the fast-moving bunch.
Protesters want to keep the pressure on just as Israel-Premier Tech digs in its heels and says it will not leave the Vuelta.
The threat of massive protests on Sunday in Madrid has triggered a rumor that the race might end Saturday at the top of the Bola del Mundo, where officials have already cut off access to fans at the top of the climb due to environmental reasons.
Vuelta officials were quick to deny this overnight and insist the race will end as scheduled Sunday with a circuit course and final sprint.
So far, police are doing the best they can, and the Guardia Civil says it has not asked for reinforcements, but that could change because no one is happy with the situation right now.
Riders continue to fear for their safety, especially when protesters jump onto the course at race speed.
“That was a little ridiculous. That’s an example of the danger that fans — or not fans — can cause. This guy ran in the middle of the road when we were going 60kph an hour. A couple of guys crossed wheels and it looked like Romo came back, so good for him,” EF’s Sean Quinn told FloBikes on Sunday.