La Vuelta 2026: Enric Mas leads 30-strong Spanish contingent as race starts in Monaco

Spanish voices have begun to fill the air in Monaco. La Vuelta's organisers have spent days preparing for a historic send-off: on Saturday, Monte Carlo becomes the first city ever to host the opening stage of all three Grand Tours.

Locals there are talking about Tadej Pogačar, one of the principality's most famous residents, and Spanish cycling will be hoping to shine in a race whose overall battle looks set to remain the Slovenian's personal fiefdom.

Enric Mas is once again the country's main hope for a strong finish in the general classification. His fifth place and encouraging climbing form at the recent Vuelta a Burgos back that up, even if his results in his previous target races this year have raised a few eyebrows.

In his favour, he knows the race inside out: this will be his eighth Vuelta and he already has four podium finishes to his name, runner-up in 2018, 2021 and 2022, and third in 2024.

Mas has always produced his best form at La Vuelta but missed last year's race entirely with thrombophlebitis, a recovery so lengthy that Movistar considered sharing team leadership with Belgian rider Cian Uijtdebroeks.

Movistar arrive in Monaco with their full arsenal, determined to end a five-year wait for a stage win. Much of that responsibility will fall on Iván Romeo.

The rider from Valladolid, one of the leading lights of Spain's new generation, arrives on the back of a podium finish at the Tour of Poland and frustrated at having missed the Tour de France through illness. Saturday's 9.6km opening time trial will be his first test.

Pablo Castrillo and Raúl García Pierna have already shown their combative streak and knack for making breakaways at this year's Tour de France, and will look to do the same here.

Both will be hoping Pogačar's UAE team allows a little more freedom for breaks this time, with Wout Van Aert and Mads Pedersen named as the main rivals.

Carlos Canal, from Ourense, could offer a sprint option over rolling terrain, while Aragonese rider Jorge Arcas will work in the shadows to support the group.

Mikel Landa is another rider keen to make a point. The Álava rider has yet to rediscover his best form since a crash at the Itzulia Basque Country, and arrives having failed to feature among the leaders at either the Vuelta a Burgos or the Tour of Czech Republic.

In his tenth Vuelta appearance, he'll be looking to find his rhythm in the opening days and chase a stage win that has eluded him since 2019.

"Mikel brings a lot of experience, and he's highly motivated to prove what he's capable of," said his director, Sep Vanmarcke.

There's a similar story, tinged with a sense of farewell, for Pello Bilbao. The same viral infection that ruled Romeo out of the Tour de France opened the door for Bilbao to return to La Vuelta for the first time since 2018.

He's ruled himself out of the general classification fight in favour of chasing a stage win. "It's the only one I've got left to complete the set of stage victories across all three Grand Tours," he said.

"I'm not someone who's obsessed with the record books, but I like a challenge, and this is another new one for me."

Ineos, meanwhile, have already confirmed Carlos Rodríguez in their line-up. His last two seasons have been largely forgettable, hampered by physical problems and a loss of confidence, though that shouldn't overshadow a strong 2022 Vuelta and an excellent 2023, when he finished fifth overall and won a stage at the Tour de France.

He looked sharper at Burgos, and at 25, with his best years as a stage racer perhaps still ahead of him, he could show a very different version of himself in the race's second half, which passes through his native Almuñécar.

Cristian Rodríguez, from Almeria, missed out on Tour de France selection despite finishing eighth at the Tour d'Auvergne and being the best-placed Spaniard in last year's race.

At 21, Markel Beloki has enjoyed a promising run of results, including his first two professional wins at the Tour de l'Ain and eighth place at the Vuelta a Burgos, his final tune-up before the Vuelta. He rides for EF Education, a team he'll leave for Ineos at the end of the season, where Richard Carapaz leads the line.

Beloki will support the Ecuadorian in the mountains but should get at least one day to chase his own ambitions. He was the youngest rider at last year's Vuelta and finished eighth on the Valdezcaray summit finish that shaped the race. He's already ridden this year's Giro d'Italia, where he featured in the fight for the top 10 in the first part of the race, and will be hoping his third grand tour leaves an even better taste than the previous two.

Ibon Ruiz is chasing a fitting end to what's already the best season of his career. He opened his palmarès with a win at the Mercan'Tour Classic, was runner-up at La Route d'Occitanie, fifth at the Tour du Jura, ninth in Turkey, 11th at the Vuelta a Jaén and 18th at the Itzulia, results that have earned him a two-year move to Bahrain. After a long training camp in the Sierra Nevada in search of peak form, he'll have a free role to chase a stage win.

Kern Pharma, who impressed in 2024, bring Izki winner Urko Berrade along with Iván Cobo, Diego Uriarte, sprinter Marc Brustrenga and Biscayan rider Iñigo Elosegui.

Xabier Mikel Azparren will be joined at Pinarello by David González, national champion Marcel Camprubí and veteran David de la Cruz. Sergio Samitier rides for Cofidis, while Jesús Herrada, José Manuel Díaz, Mario Aparicio, Sinuhé Fernández and José Luis Faura are all regular breakaway riders. The Spanish contingent of 30 is rounded out by young riders Pau Martí, 21, and Pablo Torres, 20, Pau Miquel of Bahrain, and Movistar pair Carlos Canal and Jorge Arcas.

It's this group that will carry Spanish cycling's hopes of seeing a home rider raise their arms in victory, a feat last managed in 1996 and 2021, and of reversing a run in which the country's successes have come few and far between over the past three seasons.