Race news

Tadej Pogacar forced to abandon Vuelta after dramatic stage 8 crash

The race leader was forced to abandon after a crash with 32km remaining.

Free to read. No paywall. Support our work and never miss a story:
Tadej Pogacar 2026 Vuelta stage 6
Luis Angel Gomez / Cor Vos

Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) has abandoned the Vuelta a España on stage 8. 

The race leader was involved in a mass crash with 32km remaining and was immediately surrounded by his teammates. 

He remained on the ground, being treated by medical staff. After initially getting to his feet, Pogačar, who had multiple wounds, had to sit back down. 

After more checks, Pogačar was forced to abandon the Vuelta as he entered the race ambulance.

It marks the first time that Pogačar was unable to finish a race for the first time since the 2023 edition of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and is the first Grand Tour he has abandoned. 

Pogačar had won three stages in the opening week and led the general classification by 3:50 over Enric Mas (Movistar), who moved into the virtual race lead. 

In addition, Pogačar sat second in the points classification, two points behind Wout van Aert, and led the mountains classification by 10 points over stage 7 winner Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility).

More to follow...

Tadej Pogacar - 2025 - Tour de France stage 12

Join our WhatsApp service

Be first to know. Subscribe to Domestique on WhatsApp for free and stay up to date with all the latest from the world of cycling.

we are grateful to our partners.
Are you?

We believe cycling journalism should be accessible to everyone. That's why Domestique remains free to read, with the support of our partners. We work with brands that respect our audience and help us keep producing independent cycling journalism. If you come across them, we hope you'll consider supporting the brands that support Domestique.

Domestique
Co-created with our Founding Domestiques Thank you for your ideas, feedback and support ❤️