{"id":766198,"date":"2026-09-10T13:46:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-10T13:46:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/766198\/"},"modified":"2026-09-10T13:46:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-10T13:46:14","slug":"vuelta-a-espana-stage-18-live-callum-thornley-sets-early-benchmark-as-enric-mas-and-primoz-roglic-set-to-face-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/766198\/","title":{"rendered":"Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a stage 18 LIVE: Callum Thornley sets early benchmark as Enric Mas and Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d set to face-off"},"content":{"rendered":"

2026-09-10T13:43:10.888Z<\/p>\n

Jo\u00e3o Almeida has finished his ride – and he’s narrowly slower than Thornley! Having been 2 seconds up at the first check, and on the same time at the second, the Portuguese slowed in relation to the leader and must settle for second at the clubhouse, 6 seconds down.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:38:35.602Z<\/p>\n

Before the GC race gets going, there\u2019s a stage win to be won, and a couple of top favourites have just begun their rides – Bruno Armirail, and Stefan K\u00fcng. Both these riders have spent most of this Vuelta waiting for today, and have rolled off the ramp with the look of men on a mission.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:33:42.505Z<\/p>\n

That said, at 32.1km, this is a longer time trial than most of those 22. Here is how much time he\u2019s lost in every previous time trial the two have competed in that were over 30km.<\/p>\n

2025 Tour de France: 1:38 (33km)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2022 Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a: 1:04 (31km)<\/p>\n

2022 Dauphine: 1:11 (32km)<\/p>\n

2021 Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a: 2:04 (34km)<\/p>\n

2020 Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a: 1:43 (34km)<\/p>\n

2020 Tour de France: 0-49 (36.2km)<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:29:10.960Z<\/p>\n

Rogli\u010d might be the better time trialist than Mas, so much so that he has beaten him in all 22 of the stages they\u2019ve competed in throughout their careers; but, looking back over all those previous results, Mas has reason to be optimistic. In none of those past stages has he lost as much as 2:10 to the Slovenian, which is all he needs to defend today in order to protect the red jersey.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:24:20.297Z<\/p>\n

Jo\u00e3o Almeida appears to have found some form! He’s just become the first man to post a time quicker than Thornley at the first time check, albeit by just the two seconds. As a man who knows how to pace himself, you’d back him to go on to set the best time at the finish.<\/p>\n

\n

\"JEREZ\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:21:06.692Z<\/p>\n

There’s just over an hour and a half to go until Enric Mas sets off for the most important time trial of his life. He’s trying not to worry about how other people will ride, but focus instead on delivering the fastest time that he is capable of.<\/p>\n

‘I’ll have to bring out the best version of Enric’ – Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a leader Mas focused on his own performance in key time trial on Thursday<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:14:27.801Z<\/p>\n

Ivo Oliveira has just posted the second fastest time at the finish, but he’s a long way off Thornley’s time, who was 27 seconds faster.<\/p>\n

The Scotsman’s next threat looks set to come from Xabier Mikel Azparren, who has posted a time at the first check that’s just 5 seconds slower.<\/p>\n

\n

\"JEREZ\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:06:58.831Z<\/p>\n

The winner of both the previous two stages, Matthew Brennan, has started his ride. He won’t be making it a hat-trick today, and will be taking it easier around the course, but whatever happens he’s astounded with his performances at this Vuelta. His Visma-Lease a Bike has enjoyed great success in Grand Tours over the years, but this is their most prolific in history.<\/p>\n

‘That doesn’t really sit well’ \u2013 Matthew Brennan in disbelief after fifth Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a triumph and breaking Visma’s Grand Tour stage win record<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T13:02:16.128Z<\/p>\n

For unbeatable coverage across road, gravel and tech, subscribe to Cyclingnews. You’ll get comprehensive race coverage of La Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a, subscriber-exclusive analysis from our expert columnists, in-depth features and industry-leading tech insight. Plus, the Cyclingnews app lets you follow the action wherever you go! Join today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:57:23.103Z
\nNEW FASTEST TIME – CALLUM THORNLEY<\/p>\n

Thornley maintains his pace all the way until the finish, and has put 29 seconds into Hayter. That could put him in the hot seat for sometime.<\/p>\n

That said, seasoned time trialist Ivo Oliveira is out on the course now and looking good, just 7 seconds down on Thornley at the first check. Watch this space.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:49:27.480Z<\/p>\n

Hayter has just arrived at the finish with a time of 35:54, having passed a few of the minute men who started before him.<\/p>\n

He’s in the hot seat – but may not want to make himself too comfortable, as Thornley is still looking good to beat his time. At the second time check he retained his lead over Hayter, posting a time 23 seconds quicker.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:43:24.519Z<\/p>\n

Oscar Chamberlain, who was seventh on the opening stage time trial, is on the course, but is a little down at the first time check, 27 seconds slower than Thornley and 8 seconds slower than Hayter.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile Hayter is currently the quickest at the second time check – but Thornley is yet to pass through it.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:34:48.889Z<\/p>\n

Thornley has just gone through the first time check, and he’s the quickest so far – 19 seconds quicker than his compatriot Hayter. They’re both going for it, and are a long way up on the rest of the field. Theirs is the fight to be the early pace-setter, and so far Thornley is winning it.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:27:32.186Z<\/p>\n

Today’s stage is held in El Puerto de Santa Mar\u00eda, where the riders are setting off in turn from the town’s bull ring. It’s making for a spectacular backdrop.<\/p>\n

\n

\"JEREZ\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:20:39.155Z<\/p>\n

Another contender for the stage has just begun, and it’s another Brit – Callum Thornley. The 23-year-old was fourth in the opening stage, and as well as taking notes for teammate Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d, he’ll also be going all in for himself to set the fastest possible time.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:17:08.208Z<\/p>\n

One of the favourites it also one of the first riders to set off – Ethan Hayter. The Brit was one of the protagonists of the first week of the race, starting with an agonising second-place finish behind Tadej Poga\u010dar in the opening stage time trial.<\/p>\n

He’s struggled since then, as evidenced by how far down he is on the GC, but if he’s well-rested and feeling fresh for this time trial, he’s one of the favourites for the stage.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:09:07.497Z
\nOFFICIAL START<\/p>\n

And they’re off! Mathias Sunek\u00e6r Norsgaard rolls off the start ramp to get this crucial, potentially race-defining time trial underway.<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:05:33.745Z<\/p>\n

Mathias Sunek\u00e6r Norsgaard will be the rider to get us underway in just a few minutes after which the riders will set off at one minute intervals, until we reach the top twenty on GC, from which point they\u2019ll set off every two minutes; Enric Mas in the red jersey will be the last to start, at 16:55 local time.<\/p>\n

Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a 2026: Stage 18 time trial start times<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T12:00:15.516Z<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a flat course, and therefore one that should help the better time trialists among the GC contenders (ie, Rogli\u010d) maximise their time gain, while also giving the specialists further down the ranking a great shot at winning the stage. Have a read of our full preview here.<\/p>\n

Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a 2026 stage 18 preview \u2013 Can Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d produce vintage time trial performance to maximise pressure on Enric Mas in race for red jersey?<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T11:55:18.832Z<\/p>\n

The man looking to depose Enric Mas from the top of the classification is Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d. While Mas has never won a race of this calibre before, Rogli\u010d has made a career of doing so; rather than hunting his first ever Vuelta title, he instead is looking to break the record for the most ever.<\/p>\n

As an elite time trialist, this is the day he has been waiting for to make a move on the red jersey, and will hope he can make Mas crack under the considerable pressure he is under.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2026-09-10T11:47:22.463Z<\/p>\n

Today might just be the biggest day in the career of Enric Mas. A pro for ten years, the Spaniard has been one of the best climbers in the peloton for most of that time, but has never quite managed to deliver the big result that matches his talents.<\/p>\n

Now, with just four more stages left to complete, he\u2019s on the verge of taking one of the biggest prizes there is in cycling (especially for a Spaniard) – the Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a. But to do so, he can\u2019t just rely on his climbing, but will today need to call up on his more limited time trialling skills.<\/p>\n

\n

\"SEVILLA,\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Hello and welcome to stage 18 of the Vuelta a Espa\u00f1a.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2026-09-10T13:43:10.888Z Jo\u00e3o Almeida has finished his ride – and he’s narrowly slower than Thornley! Having been 2 seconds…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":766199,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-766198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=766198"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766198\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=766198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=766198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=766198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}