Britain’s Matthew Brennan secured his third victory at the 2026 Vuelta a España on Wednesday, sprinting to win stage 11 in Lorca. The 21-year-old Visma-Lease a Bike rider joined elite company as the youngest cyclist with multiple stage wins since Tadej Pogačar in 2019, while Enric Mas retained the overall race lead.
Matthew Brennan Wins Stage 11 in Lorca
Matthew Brennan etched his name into Grand Tour history on Wednesday, winning the 153.8km stage 11 from Cartagena to Lorca at the Vuelta a España. The 21-year-old British sprinter held off France’s Bryan Coquard and Belgium’s Jordi Meeus at the finish line, claiming his third victory of the race and joining rare company among debutants.
The triumph makes Brennan the first rider to capture three stages in his first Grand Tour appearance since Tadej Pogačar achieved the feat seven years prior in 2019.
Brennan held up three fingers after he crossed the line to celebrate a trio of victories in an impressive first Grand Tour.
I'm with a team full of massive champions,
said Brennan, who was also victorious in the second and fifth stages.
You've got guys who have been on podiums in Grand Tours and won them as well, and you've also got guys who have won big classics in some huge races.
LORCA, Spain (AP) — Matthew Brennan triumphed again in the Spanish Vuelta on Wednesday, becoming the first rider to win three stages in his first Grand Tour since Tadej Pogačar seven years ago.
Brennan secured his third victory in Wednesday’s 11th stage, a mostly flat route of 153.8 kilometers (96 miles) from Cartagena to Lorca.
We took the initiative today again,
Brennan said.
The boys pulled as hard as they could even after a tough day in the legs yesterday.
We still went full gas.
Coming into the final, we really held our own place and knew that we were all strong enough to kind of get to where we want to be.
The 21-year-old British rider of team Visma-Lease a Bike also won the second and fifth stages to become the youngest cyclist with multiple stage wins in the Vuelta since Pogačar’s three victories 2019.
It's massive (to have won three stages),
Brennan said.
I’m with a team full of massive champions.
Visma-Lease a Bike Tactics and Wout van Aert’s Lead-Out
Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) made it a hat-trick of stage wins from his debut Grand Tour, winning stage 11 of the Vuelta a España after a lead-out from teammate Wout van Aert.
The 21-year-old has been the dominant sprinter at this Vuelta and once again underlined his status as the fastest finisher in the race, winning clearly ahead of Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) and Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe).
After the question marks over the team’s tactics the previous day, when Van Aert was the chosen man but came up short, Visma-Lease a Bike flipped the tactics back again, with Van Aert playing a leading role not only in leading out the sprint but also putting out fires on the day’s sole climb, the Alto de Aledo.
It was a relatively gentle category 3 ascent, topping out 30km from the line, but it was a hectic phase of the race as Pinarello-Q36.5 piled on the pressure and riders looked to attack both on the climb and down the other side.
The victory was forged through a textbook team display orchestrated by Visma-Lease a Bike and teammate Wout van Aert.
After questions arose over the squad’s tactics on the previous day—when Van Aert missed out on the win—the team completely flipped its approach for the predominantly flat stage.
After a four-man breakaway, which included Britain’s Ethan Hayter, was eventually pulled back in, Belgian Wout Van Aert took on the challenge heading into the final kilometres, before team-mate Brennan made his signature finishing dash.
Enric Mas Retains the Red Jersey
Overall leader Enric Mas of Spain retained the red jersey and has a one minute and 18-second lead over Slovenia’s Primoz Roglic in the general classification, with Britain’s Oscar Onley just over a further minute back in fourth.
In the general classification standings, Movistar’s Enric Mas finished in the peloton to retain his red jersey with an overall lead of one minute and 18 seconds from Primoz Roglic.
Lidl-Trek had earlier confirmed sprinter Mads Pedersen’s withdrawal from the race ahead of stage 11 because of illness.
While the sprinters fought for stage honors, the contenders for the general classification negotiated a nervous day featuring early crosswinds and echelon action.
Movistar Team leader Enric Mas finished safely inside the peloton to retain the red jersey.
The sprinters will cede the spotlight as the Vuelta heads into punishing terrain on Thursday.
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