Enric Mas wins the Vuelta a España 2023

Enric Mas crossed the finish line in Granada arm in arm with his teammates to the cheers of his compatriots. After all the unfulfilled expectations and the sometimes biting criticism, the Mallorcan has finally reached the goal of his dreams at the age of 31. Twelve years after Alberto Contador's last triumph, Spain has another Vuelta winner.

On the last stage over 112 kilometers, which was won by the Norwegian Tobias Halland Johannessen, Mas safely brought his red jersey to the finish line on the circuit in Granada after the four-time overall winner Primoz Roglic from Slovenia and the Austrian Felix Gall could no longer pose a threat to him on the final mountain stages.

«I had a lot of fun throughout the Vuelta. Everything went great, I enjoyed every kilometer," said Mas, adding: "I have experienced many difficult moments in all this time, but winning a Vuelta without suffering is impossible. You work towards experiencing a day like this. I dreamed of that.”

Third place three times and third once

For years, Mas lived under great pressure at home to succeed Contador. He took second place three times and third once at the Vuelta - not enough for the cycling fans in Spain who have long been accustomed to success. The fact that it finally succeeded made his predecessor Contador happy.

«It often seems as if a performance is worthless if you don't win. That's why cycling will finally give Enric Mas the recognition he deserves with this Vuelta victory," Contador told the Spanish newspaper "AS". The pistolero once defined an era, winning the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia twice and the Vuelta three times.

Footsteps that were too big for Mas. And if superstar Tadej Pogacar, who was clearly in the lead, hadn't had the fatal fall on the eighth stage, it would hardly have been enough this time either. But when the world champion was out of the race, Mas outgrew himself in the red jersey. He won the mountain stage on the Alto de Aitana and even showed completely new qualities in the individual time trial, which is not at all part of his repertoire. But Mas didn't allow himself to be more than 33 seconds behind old champion Roglic - the time trial Olympic champion in Tokyo.

Last round on Sunday was neutralized

On the 21st and final stage he no longer had anything to fear. Also because the times for the overall ranking were frozen a good ten kilometers from the finish before the last lap. In doing so, the organizers complied with the wishes of the drivers who had pointed out the dangerous course. The tour organizers also took a similar measure in Paris.

“Many years have passed without a Spaniard winning a major tour. And not only that: you hardly played a major role. Personally, I am very happy for Enric; “It’s a wonderful feeling,” added Contador. In recent years, Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard and Roglic have not left much behind in the big tours.

“This time one of the big tours remained free and Enric took advantage of this opportunity. “It wasn’t a gift, it was the result of his hard work and his excellent form,” emphasized Contador. Mas was once prepared for professional cycling in Contador's youth team. The circle came full circle on Sunday.