Gall arrived at this Vuelta three weeks removed from his first career GC win, at Vuelta a Burgos, with zero races in between to confirm the form held. He's raced like it anyway: stirring the gravel on Stage 6's Puerto El Bartolo, then finishing 6 seconds behind Pogačar at Valdelinares while staying in the podium fight. His climbing profile — built for sustained efforts over late sprints — makes long gradients like Valdelinares the terrain where those attacks actually cost rivals something.