Felix Gall admits defensive Vuelta tactics as Roglič's second place ends up just 29 seconds away

Felix Gall is set to finish on the podium of the Vuelta a España after already taking second at the Giro d’Italia, an outstanding achievement for the 28-year-old Austrian. The Decathlon CMA CGM leader has made a huge step forward in 2026, and he underlined that once again on Stage 20 by even riding away from race leader Enric Mas on the final climb. But it also raises an obvious question: what if Gall had made his move earlier? Could Primož Roglič’s second place have been within reach?

Most eyes during Stage 20 were understandably on Enric Mas and Primož Roglič, first and second in the general classification for Movistar and Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe respectively. Their teams were also among those setting the tempo on the final climb, yet when somebody finally launched a serious attack, it was Gall. The Austrian went so hard that Roglič was forced right to his limit to defend his advantage over the Decathlon leader. Gall waited until relatively late on the Collado del Alguacil after what had already been a punishing day. Earlier in the stage, he had found himself on the wrong side of a split caused by the wind.

“We were caught a little by surprise by the crosswinds, so that was definitely a wake-up call. In the end, Movistar shut it down again,” Gall explained with some relief afterwards to Eurosport.

With the Puerto de El Purche climbed twice, Richard Carapaz repeatedly tried to shake up the race for EF Education-EasyPost. The Ecuadorian attacked what felt like endlessly, making around seven attempts over the course of the stage.

It was a notable comment, given that Gall had started Stage 20 with more than two minutes in hand over Carapaz in the fight for third place. “I just didn’t want to have to close another gap to him, because you don’t want to let such a strong rider get away,” Gall explained of his focus on Carapaz. In other words, he was mainly looking behind him.

That looking over his shoulder ended when Gall launched his own attack on the steep final climb of the day. Only red jersey wearer Mas could follow, but even the Spaniard eventually had to allow a small gap to open. “I just wanted to finish in a strong way. I’m happy after such a hard day. Enric also had a buffer to play with, so maybe he didn’t want to go completely over the limit. In any case, it’s nice to finish like this.”

The fact that Gall came to within 29 seconds of Roglič in the battle for second place overall was not something he addressed in his first reaction. But what if Gall had gone a little earlier? “We wanted to go for the stage win today, or at least control the race. But when Matthew [Riccitello] abandoned, we were down to five riders and decided to stay in the wheels,” Gall said, explaining Decathlon’s defensive approach on Stage 20.

Ultimately, satisfaction prevails, because Gall is simply going to finish on the podium of two Grand Tours in 2026. “It’s been a really good season if I finish third tomorrow. The big goal this year was to compete for the podium in the Grand Tours, and that worked out really well at the Giro d’Italia, where I finished second. I’m happy that I was also in good shape here. That’s a good development.”