Tadej started the 81st Vuelta in grand style. In Monaco, he was the fastest in the opening 9.4-kilometre time trial, claimed the stage victory and put on the red leader’s jersey. His victory could hardly have been closer: he beat runner-up Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) by nine hundredths of a second.
»It’s a weird feeling to win the time trial on the first stage and by such a small margin. I was not expecting it. I’m really happy. This red is a really nice colour,« Tadej said at the finish, after completing Stage 1, like Hayter, in a time of 10:57 and at an average speed of 51.5 km/h.
»That 0.09 happened when I passed my apartment because that was the most technical part, and I walk and cycle there every day. Even though it is completely different in the race, still, you race on your home roads, and you know it super well, so that helped me a lot today,« Tadej also attributed his narrow victory to his excellent knowledge of the roads in Monaco, where he has lived since 2019.
Seven years ago, he also made his debut at the Vuelta, winning three stages, finishing third overall and claiming the white jersey as the best young rider. On his return to the Tour of Spain, his goal is to win the red jersey at the finish in Granada on 13 September. Will he wear it for all three weeks after winning Stage 1?
»It’s going to be tough. Tomorrow, I think, there are some guys who are close in time and can do a breakaway or sprint for bonus seconds, so it’s going to be a fight for the red jersey and we can see some shuffle in the GC tomorrow,« Tadej added.
Today, he celebrated his 20th victory of the season and the 128th of his career, while tomorrow he faces the longest stage of this year’s Vuelta, a 214.3-kilometer race from Monaco to Manosque in France.