Leader Pogacar abandons Vuelta after crash

Race leader Tadej Pogacar has abandoned the Vuelta a Espana after crashing during stage eight.

The world champion, who was looking to complete a full set of Grand Tour victories, crashed with about 33km to go.

Pogacar, 27, was riding in the midst of the peloton when he came off his bike, hurting his left shoulder and cutting the left side of his face.

The Slovenian appeared to try and get back on his bike before sitting back down again.

He then walked unaided into an ambulance to mark the first time he has abandoned a Grand Tour.

The overwhelming favourite to win the three-week long race had started the stage three minutes and 50 seconds clear of Spaniard Enric Mas in second place.

In what was a chaotic race, another crash occurred in the finishing straight as France's Bryan Coquard claimed his first stage win in a Grand Tour.

The 34-year-old edged Lidl-Trek rider Mads Pedersen in a photo finish.

"I think it has been 13 years, it has been a lot of work and I have finished second a lot of times," Coquard told TNT Sports.

"I have not been in good positions in the first two sprints, I know I have good legs. Maybe I climb better now, I am fast again."

Mas now leads the general classification by one minute and 11 seconds from Decathlon CMA CGM rider Felix Gall.

Six-time Grand Tour winner Pogacar was on course to win all three of the sport's biggest stage races, having already won five Tours de France and a Giro d'Italia.

Having become the joint most successful Tour de France champion of all time last month, the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider is aiming to become the ninth rider to win all three Grand Tours.

Pogacar has also won almost all of the sport's biggest races. In addition to his multiple stage race victories, the two-time road world champion has won 13 one-day monument races, including the Tour of Flanders (three times), Milan-San Remo (once), Il Lombardia (five times) and Liege-Bastogne-Liege (four times).

In 2025, he recorded his best finish of second in the other monument - Paris-Roubaix.

Pogacar was going to win the Vuelta a Espana by a country mile.

Many observers believed his margin of victory could be more than 10 minutes given this much-loved three-week slog typically contains a slightly lower calibre of lead rider.

Pogacar was here to further cement his dominance among current riders by becoming only the ninth man to win all three Grand Tours (Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana).

He rarely comes to grief on the road; such is his deft bike handling, he never seems to have to wrestle with the handlebars or ever wobble his way down a descent.

But this shocking end to Pogacar's Vuelta demonstrates that no one is invincible.

Pogacar won't be entirely devastated - there is plenty of career time for him have another stab at this race. But it is unclear at this stage whether he will be able to defend his coveted rainbow world champion's jersey, given the Road World Championships take place in Canada next month.

Vuelta audiences spiked because of the presence of the world's greatest rider for a week, but now there is a real race for the red jersey. At least six previously well-beaten riders suddenly have a shot at glory.