Beyond the Peloton

Cycling writer Spencer Martin breaks down the why and how of the professional cycling race. Subscribe to learn what happened, how it happened, and why it happened in an attempt to glean a deeper understanding of the sport. Cycling writer Spencer Martin breaks down the why and how of the professional cycling race. Subscribe to learn what happened, how it happened, and why it happened in an attempt to glean a deeper understanding of the sport.

Thank you for reading the daily BTP coverage of the 2026 Vuelta a España. This coverage was only possible thanks to all BTP readers, particularly premium subscribers.BTP will take a short break, then return next week to preview and break down the Road World Championships from the roadside in Montréal.

The 2026 Vuelta wrapped up with a fittingly dramatic final stage in Granada in the shadow of the grand Alhambra, with Uno-X’s Tobias Halland Johannessen producing an upset stage win from a late-race split, outsprinting XDS-Astana’s Alessandro Romele and Alpecin-Premier Tech’s Ramses Debruyne in a three-up finish, his first win in over three years, and m…

The 2026 Vuelta’s final GC set piece, taking place against the backdrop of the otherworldly peaks of the Sierra Nevada mountains high above the ancient Moorish stronghold of Granada, produced perhaps the most dramatic and action-packed Grand Tour stage of the season, with Mikel Landa (Soudal-QuickStep) scoring a truly stunning victory after bridging up to the breakaway before soloing clear to grab his first Grand Tour stage win in nearly a decade.

Following a long, extended fight for the breakaway through the rolling hills of Andalusia, the battle to make it into the race’s front group proved fruitful, with Eddie Dunbar (Pinarello-Q36.5) delivering an emotional win from the break, his first win since the 2024 Vuelta. Dunbar emerged from a four-man group on the final climb before patiently reeling…

Tudor’s Stefan Küng won Stage 18 after perfectly pacing the flat-to-gently-rolling 32 kilometers from El Puerto de Santa María to Jerez de la Frontera through the vineyards at the heart of the Sherry Triangle in southern Spain, finishing just a handful of seconds ahead of Red Bull-Bora’s Callum Thornley and UAE’s João Almeida.

Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -38:26 Audio playback is not supported on your browser. Please upgrade. Spencer Martin, author of the Beyond the Peloton newsletter, and co-host Andrew Vontz discuss Enric Mas’ chances of winning the ongoing Vuelta a España, what to make of Matthew Brennan’s breakout performance at this race, and Wout van Aert’s return to form.

On the sun-drenched streets of Seville deep in the south of Spain, Visma and Matthew Brennan kept their win streak alive, with the 21-year-old winning a fifth stage of this Vuelta to become the youngest rider ever to reach five Grand Tour stage wins, and giving Visma-Lease a Bike their seventh win in 17 stages. But, unlike yesterday’s dominant showing i…

Visma-Lease a Bike and Matthew Brennan kept their dream Vuelta alive on Tuesday’s flat, fast stage through the heat of Andalusia, which saw them produce yet another dominant win in the bunch sprint along the streets of La Rábida. The win, which saw Brennan dropped off perfectly by his leadout deluxe Wout van Aert, came over Bryan Coquard in second and L…

As expected, the heat-shortened Stage 15 produced explosive racing through the olive groves of southern Spain, with the 110-kilometer course more closely resembling the all-out efforts of the Spring Classics than a measured Grand Tour stage. In the end, Wout van Aert won after bridging up to the day’s early breakaway from the peloton and out-sprinting a five-rider group to take his second stage win in three days and Visma-Lease a Bike’s fifth of this Vuelta.