The 2025 Vuelta a Espana continued Saturday with stage 14 – a 135.9-kilometer ride in the mountains on a route from Bay of Biscay city Aviles, in the province of Asturias, to La Farrapona Lagos de Somiedo. The first half of the stage would be contested in hilly terrain, after which the riders would enter more serious mountain territory featuring L’Alto Tenebreo (Category 3) and Puerto de San Llaurienzu (Category 1). The stage would conclude with a finale on the Lagos de Somiedo La Farrapona climb, which is a Beyond Category climb. The stage finale would be situated in very scenic mountain terrain featuring post-glacial lakes and rare wildlife species, including eagles and more than two hundred bears.

Pro cycling experts here at Roadcycling.com were predicting Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates), Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates), Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team), Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates), and Team Visma-Lease a Bike’s Jonas Vingegaard as high-probability winners of today’s stage.

Despite his lack of initiative in yesterday’s stage, Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma-Lease a Bike) remained general classification leader of this year’s Vuelta a Espana before today’s stage 14. Following a strong effort on L’Angliru, Portuguese GC favorite Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates) was in second place and 46 seconds behind Vingegaard. Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) was still in third place in the general classification after suffering in Friday’s stage 13.

Multiple breakaway attempts were launched in the first twenty kilometers of stage 14 and eventually a group of riders formed, what appeared to be, a viable lead over the main peloton. The group featured Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates), Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates), Victor Campenaerts (Team Visma-Lease a Bike), Nico Denz (Red Bull – Bora – Hansgrohe), and Finlay Pickering (Bahrain-Victorious). Additional riders joined the group in the following kilometers.

Victor Campenaerts suffered a flat tire in the breakaway. The Visma-Lease a Bike first received a replacement bike from a neutral service car and then had to wait for his own Visma service car to reach him. Race participant number 13 had not brought the Belgian rider much luck.

Campenaerts and Gijs Leemreize were chasing the front group when 89 kilometers remained of today’s stage. They were now 01:38 minutes behind the front group, which now featured twenty-two riders. The main peloton was more than four minutes behind the breakaway frontmen. Riders from Visma-Lease a Bike were controlling the pace in the main peloton for GC leader Jonas Vingegaard, closely followed by riders from Alpecin-Deceuninck.

The front group entered L’Alto Tenebreo, which was the first categorized climb of the stage. 24 riders were still in the group and Bjerg and Soler from UAE Team Emirates were leading the group on major parts of the climb. The group was still together when two kilometers of the climb remained. The Visma-Lease a Bike headed main peloton was now more than five minutes behind and the chances of a stage win for the frontmen were increasing.

While UAE Team Emirates sent riders to the front of the main peloton to increase the pace, the front group reached the summit, and Marc Soler gained the most points for the KOM classification. He was followed by Gianmarco Garofoli and Johannes Staune-Mittet.

Team Visma-Lease a Bike replaced UAE Team Emirates at the front of the main peloton on the descent, and the front group entered the false-flat section with a lead of almost six minutes over the main peloton.

Dylan van Baarle and Wilco Kelderman continued to set the right pace for team captain Jonas Vingegaard as the race approached Puerto de San Llaurienzu, which was the second categorized climb of the stage. The breakaway group entered the Category 1 climb with a time advantage of almost six minutes. The ten climbing kilometers would have an average gradient of 8.6 percent.

Gijs Leemreize (Team Picnic-PostNL) launched a solo attack from the front group with 41 kilometers to the finish line and almost eight kilometers of the current climb remaining. It did not take long for the other breakaway riders to reel him in.

UAE Team Emirates had moved to the front of the main peloton to preserve the interests of team captain Joao Almeida and to test the legs of GC leader Jonas Vingegaard. The increased pace forced Mikel Landa (Soudal-QuickStep) to drop from the peloton as he was still suffering from serious back pain. Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) was suffering and Egan Bernal (Ineos-Grenadiers-TotalEnergies) also lost contact with the reduced GC favorites peloton on the climb.

Gianmarco Garofoli launched an attack from the breakaway group, and the Soudal-QuickStep rider opened a gap of twenty seconds. Andrea Bagioli launched a counterattack. The breakaway group now featured approximately ten riders. 37 kilometers remained. The attacks were neutralized.

Juan Ayuso and Jay Vine were setting a fast and excruciating pace in the main peloton as the riders approached the summit. Jonas Vingegaard did not appear to be in trouble, so the UAE Team Emirates riders pressed on for Joao Almeida.

James Shaw (EF Education-EasyPost) was the first rider to reach the summit of Puerto de San Llauriezu. The rider from Great Britain also entered the fast descent first and showed great courage.

Twenty kilometers of today’s stage 14 awaited the riders, and they were approaching La Farrapona Lagos de Somiedo. The main peloton, which featured the GC favorites, was now 03:25 minutes behind the breakaway group.

Marc Soler attacked solo from the front group with 19 kilometers to the finish line. He was followed by Johan Staune-Mittet (Decathlon-AG2r) shortly later. Carlos Verona and Kevin Vermaerke had formed a chase duo. The rest of the remaining breakaway group participants were now twenty-one seconds behind.

The main peloton had reduced the gap to 03:16 minutes as sixteen kilometers remained. Mikkel Bjerg was leading while setting a fast pace.

Marc Soler left Staune-Mittet behind with 15.9-kilometers to the summit. Norwegian Staune-Mittet was still chasing ten seconds behind when thirteen kilometers remained. Armirail, Garofoli, Vermaerke, Samitier, Shaw, Bisiaux, Hirt, Pickering, and Verona were now 22 seconds behind, while the main peloton was three minutes behind Soler – apparently with little chance of catching Soler before the finish line.

Soler increased his advantage over Staune-Mittet and the other chasers in the following kilometers. The Spanish rider was now almost a minute ahead of the Norwegian rider with eleven kilometers to the finish line and a well-deserved shower and rest.

Jay Vine replaced Mikkel Bjerg at the front of the GC favorites group and he increased the hard work for team captain Joao Almeida. Few riders remained in the GC rider group at this point.

Marc Soler was still solo in front when five kilometers remained to the summit and finish line of stage 14. Staune-Mittet was 01:37 minutes behind the frontman. Felix Grossschartner took over from Jay Vine in the GC group. The Austrian rider was the final lead-out man for Joao Almeida. Jonas Vingegaard was still on Almeida’s wheel while supported by Sepp Kuss and Matteo Jorgenson. Thomas Pidcock, Jai Hindley and Matthew Riccitello were also still present.

Pickering and Vermaerke joined Staune-Mittet, and the trio were now chasing Soler together, but the Spanish rider had a lead of 01:32 minutes and only four kilometers to the stage end. Pickering then dropped Vermaerke and Staune-Mittet.

Soler was still solo in front when just two kilometers remained to the finish line. Pickering was more than a minute behind, while the GC favorites was two minutes back and now featured eight riders.

Finlay Pickering got reeled in by the GC favorites group with one kilometer to the finish line. Jai Hindley accelerated and tried to drop the other GC favorites. Hindley formed a trio with Joao Almeida and Jonas Vingegaard. A few hundred meters remained.

Marc Soler remained strong all the way to the summit and crossed the finish line as winner of stage 14 for UAE Team Emirates.

Almeida and Vingegaard accelerated and left Hindley behind as they approached the finish line. Vingegaard proved the strongest of the two and crossed the finish line ahead of Almeida.

Jonas Vingegaard remains general classification leader ahead of Joao Almeida after stage 14.

Sunday’s stage 15 of Vuelta a Espana 2025 will take the riders in the Vuelta peloton down from the mountains on a 167.8-kilometer route from A Veiga Vegadeo to Monforte de Lemos. It will be the final stage before the second rest day of this year’s Vuelta Espana. Look for a long breakaway to make it to the stage finish – or for the stage to conclude in a mass sprint finish.

Stay tuned to Roadcycling.com for complete coverage from the 2025 Vuelta a Espana.