Mads Pedersen admits Vuelta a España red jersey is now virtually impossible

Mads Pedersen is unlikely to wear the red jersey at this Vuelta a España. That realization came fairly quickly after the Lidl-Trek Dane could do no better than 15th in Saturday’s Stage 1 time trial. That result leaves him behind several rivals in the overall standings, riders he will now hope to beat when the race continues on Sunday.

Pedersen was undoubtedly one of the dark horses for the opening time trial in Monaco, but 15th place, 16 seconds behind stage winner Tadej Pogačar, was still something of a disappointment. On a good day, Pedersen is capable of mixing it with the very best in short time trials of this kind, but this time that was clearly not the case.

“I don’t know if I really dreamed about the red jersey, but there was certainly no reason not to go all out today,” Pedersen said afterward on TV2, as reported by Feltet. “The red jersey could have been possible. If I had finished within five seconds, then winning on Sunday would have been enough.”

There are now 14 riders ahead of him in the general classification, including powerful punchers such as Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) and Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike). “That’s why I said beforehand that I might as well try to stay in the fight for the red jersey,” Pedersen said, defending his pre-Vuelta comments, which had suggested he was genuinely prepared to make a push for the race lead.

The Dane is unlikely to lose too much sleep over it, however, because winning stages will ultimately matter more to him at this Vuelta than spending a single day in red. “That’s over now. Fifteen seconds — you’re not going to make that up with bonus seconds along the way and at the finish. It is what it is. The red jersey wasn’t a goal I came here for.”

The second stage of the Vuelta a España undoubtedly will be one of his targets, though. It is exactly the kind of stage Pedersen can win, and after seeing his red jersey hopes effectively disappear on the opening evening in Monaco, victory on Sunday would provide an immediate response.