Sunday 13 September 2026 – Vuelta a España stage 21: Carrefour Granada → Granada (112 km)

Route

The final stage of the Vuelta a España 2026 does not go to Madrid. For the first time since 2021, the organisers are deviating from the traditional finale in the capital: because of the Formula 1 race in Madrid that same weekend, the finale moves to Granada. The peloton starts at Carrefour Granada, just outside Armilla, and rides 112 kilometres to the finish in the centre of Granada. On paper the stage is classified as flat, but the finale is anything but.

The first seventy kilometres form a relaxed run-in with the usual end-of-grand-tour celebrations, via Churriana de la Vega, La Zubia, Ogíjares, Gójar, Otura, Alhendín, Las Gabias, Cúllar Vega, Santa Fe and Atarfe. At kilometre 64.6 the peloton reaches Granada. There a local circuit of around 9.8 kilometres begins, to be covered four times, each time including the climb to the Alhambra plateau: the Alhambra climb (2.1 km at 6.6%), partly over cobblestones.

The finish is on the Paseo del Salón, where the peloton passes a total of five times. On the third passage, at 92.4 kilometres, lies the intermediate sprint with bonuses of 6, 4 and 2 seconds. When the route was presented, the finish line was still just below the top of the Alhambra climb. The organisers eventually decided to move the finish to the foot of that climb.

Final kilometres

The riders take on the Alhambra climb (2.1 km at 6.6%, partly cobbled) for the last time with 7.8 kilometres still to go. After the top comes a descent and a short flat run-in to the line on the Paseo del Salón. For the winner, 10, 6 and 4 bonus seconds are up for grabs.

Recent editions

The last three final stages all took place in Madrid. 2023 – Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Deceuninck), a sprint win, while Sepp Kuss took the overall victory. 2024 – Kaden Groves again, after a small group including Filippo Ganna and Remco Evenepoel that just held off the sprinters on the line. 2025 – no official winner: the stage was stopped early after protests in the centre of Madrid, Jonas Vingegaard rode the overall win home. Granada is only the third city besides Madrid this millennium to close out the Vuelta, after Santiago de Compostela in 2014 and 2021.

Scenarios

A day for the fast finishing sprinters, provided the peloton keeps the final passage of the Alhambra climb under control. With 7.8 kilometres left after the top, that is manageable for the fastest teams.

Puncheurs and classics riders can still make something of it too. Early breakaway riders or a small group of attackers going on the final climb could beat the sprint trains, as the Tour de France showed this year on a similar city circuit in Paris.

Local

The Alhambra is the Moorish palace complex on the Sabika hill in Granada and one of the most visited monuments in Spain. Iván Romeo (Movistar) won the Spanish road title in 2025 on the roads through Granada and therefore knows the finale from experience. Riders from the Granada region itself are not on the start list of this Vuelta.

Weather forecast

On Sunday 13 September, a maximum temperature of 33.4°C is expected in Granada, with a minimum of 15.2°C. Rain is not on the cards: it will stay dry. In the finale there is a light wind from the south-southeast, with speeds of up to 15.7 km/h – not a significant factor on the Alhambra climb.

TV guide

• Eurosport 1 — from 16:00
• HBO Max — from 16:00