Tadej Pogačar chases Grand Tour set at Vuelta a España 2026, Monaco to Granada; could become ninth to complete Grand Tour set

Vuelta a España 2026: Can Tadej Pogačar complete the Grand Tour set? Route, riders to follow, schedule, and how to watch live

The final Grand Tour of the season runs from Monaco to Granada between 22 August and 13 September, with the only Grand Tour title missing from Pogačar’s prize list on the line. Read on to discover the route, contenders and how to follow every stage.

The 2026 2026 Vuelta a España begins on Saturday 22 August with a 9.4km individual time trial through the streets of Monaco, with Tadej Pogačar chasing the one Grand Tour he’s never won. The Slovenian, who won a record-equalling fifth Tour de France title in July , returns to the Spanish race for the first time since 2019.

Victory would make him only the ninth man to complete the set of all three Grand Tours. Jonas Vingegaard became the eighth in May with victory at the Giro d’Italia, but won’t defend the Vuelta crown he won in 2025 after breaking his collarbone in a Tour de France crash on 19 July, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

The road cycling route breaks with tradition in two notable ways. Granada hosts the finish, marking the first Vuelta since 2021 not to conclude in Madrid, while northern Spain is skipped entirely for the first time in 17 years — meaning no Angliru or Lagos de Covadonga.

Instead, the race starts in Monaco, where Pogačar lives, before crossing France and Andorra and heading down Spain’s east coast into Andalusia. Across 21 stages and 3,275km, the route includes seven summit finishes, more than 58,000m of climbing and two individual time trials.

The 2026 Vuelta a España at a glance

Dates: Saturday 22 August to Sunday 13 September 2026

Countries visited: Monaco, France, Andorra and Spain

Grand Tour status: Third and final Grand Tour of the 2026 season, after the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France

UCI WorldTour: 31st of 36 races on the 2026 calendar

Riders to watch at the Vuelta a España 2026

Pogačar ’s only previous Vuelta came on his Grand Tour debut in 2019, when the Slovenian finished third overall, won three stages and claimed the white jersey as best young rider.

He has since established himself as one of the greatest cyclists of his generation, winning Olympic bronze at Tokyo 2020 , five Tours de France and two world road race titles among a long list of major honours. Completing the set of all three Grand Tours would add another significant milestone to that résumé.

So, who could prevent him from earning the hat-trick?

One such challenger may be Pogačar’s fellow Slovenian Primož Roglič . The Tokyo 2020 time trial champion has won the Vuelta four times — in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2024 — and a fifth title would move him clear of Roberto Heras as the outright record holder.

Now 36, Roglič had his preparation disrupted after being hit by a car while training in late July, forcing him to miss the Clásica San Sebastián and Vuelta a Burgos.

Then there’s Felix Gall, who’s emerged as one of the peloton’s most reliable Grand Tour climbers. The 28-year-old finished second overall at this year’s Giro d’Italia, behind Vingegaard, after five runner-up finishes on mountain stages.

His form has continued into the European summer, culminating in victory at the Vuelta a Burgos, where he won the decisive third stage and secured the first general classification title of his professional career.

Enric Mas has finished runner-up at the Vuelta three times and remains one of the race’s most consistent performers, even if outright victory has continued to elude him.

His 2025 season ended early because of thrombophlebitis in his left leg, and his long-awaited Giro d’Italia debut this May didn’t go as hoped with him finishing in 32nd position. More recently, though, fifth place at the Vuelta a Burgos offered signs of improvement, and his record on home roads makes him difficult to dismiss.

How to watch the Vuelta a España 2026 live

Europe: Eurosport, streaming on HBO Max

United Kingdom: TNT Sports, streaming on HBO Max

Spain: RTVE, streaming on RTVE Play

United States: NBC Sports, streaming on Peacock

Australia: SBS, streaming on SBS On Demand

A full list of official broadcasters is available on the Vuelta a España website .

22 August - 13 September

Cycling Road | La Vuelta | Spain | Spain