All articles tagged with #pro cycling
Matthew Brennan claimed his fifth Vuelta stage win in Seville, giving Visma-Lease a Bike seven Grand Tour stage wins this season and breaking the team’s previous six-win record. The 21-year-old Brit, competing in his first Grand Tour, said he still can’t believe the achievement, while a strong lead-out from Wout van Aert and the squad’s planning were crucial to the historic sprint.
Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease A Bike) won stage 11 of the Vuelta a España in Lorca, outsprinting Bryan Coquard and Jordi Meeus to claim his third stage win of the race after a tight, lead-out heavy finale.
British sprinter Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike) delivered a stunning Grand Tour debut by sprinting to stage 11 victory in Lorca, completing a hat-trick after a flawless lead-out from Wout van Aert and Christophe Laporte. He now has three stage wins in his Vuelta debut, a feat matched only by Tadej Pogačar since 2019, and stands at 22 career wins at age 21, highlighting how his team’s powerful sprint setup has propelled his rapid rise.
Visma-Lease a Bike attempted a tactical shift on stage 10 of the Vuelta to set up Wout van Aert with a strong lead-out and breaks controlled by Matthew Brennan and Sepp Kuss, following a two-stage build-up in which Brennan led attacks and delivered a pivotal lead-out. However, the uphill sprint ended with Van Aert finishing fourth, leaving the green jersey in his hands but the stage win eluding his team, as positioning and the closing corners narrowed his options. He praised his teammates for their effort and signaled continued pursuit of sprint glory.
Sean Kelly argues that Tadej Pogačar's race-ending crash could end his season, with a potential collarbone and vertebra fracture delaying recovery and jeopardizing his World Championship defense, while La Vuelta becomes a wider, more unpredictable battle for the red jersey led by Enric Mas and challenged by riders like Roglič, Carapaz and Onley; the incident also complicates next season's plans as teams reassess schedules and targets.
Tadej Pogačar suffered a concussion, a displaced collarbone fracture and a cervical fracture in a crash at Vuelta a España. UAE Team Emirates says the collarbone operation can only proceed after concussion symptoms subside, with surgery likely on Tuesday or Wednesday. With the World Championships in Montréal looming, team principal Mauro Gianetti cautioned that a timely return is far from certain and a final decision will depend on his recovery progress and the outcome of surgery.
Tadej Pogacar crashed on stage 8 of the Vuelta a España and, suffering a broken collarbone and concussion, abandoned the race. The peloton showed immediate solidarity by slowing down and refraining from full speed as the news spread, while stage winner Bryan Coquard described a bittersweet victory—joy for his win tempered by sadness for Pogacar. Pogacar’s exit dramatically alters the race’s dynamics and leaves teammates and rivals alike processing the loss and its implications for the rest of the Grand Tour.
Enric Mas chased and then caught Tadej Pogačar on the Puerto de El Bartolo climb after Pogacar’s long early attack on Vuelta a España stage 6; Pogacar still won the stage and extended his lead, with UAE Team Emirates arguing Mas’s move was driven by safety on the descent’s new surface, a rare GC development that helped drop rivals while keeping the leader out of danger.
Tadej Pogačar won the opening 9.6km time trial in Monaco by a razor-thin nine-hundredths of a second over Ethan Hayter, claiming the first red leader’s jersey of the Vuelta a España as the field stayed tightly packed at the top of the GC; Primož Roglič finished 24th as the race heads into stage 2.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG performance head Jeroen Swart says the Vuelta a España 2026 will be the toughest in years, with over 58,000 meters of elevation, meaning the race will be grueling even for Tadej Pogačar. The plan centers on keeping Pogačar mentally fresh (and peaking after the Tour) while navigating a brutal first week with high mountains; the UAE team aims to balance aggressive early GC moves with potential conservatism later to protect form for the World Championships. Domination is unlikely; the focus is on getting the job done and maximizing his chances wherever the route dictates.
On a shortened final stage in Paris, Tadej Pogačar clinched his fifth Tour de France title as Mathieu van der Poel won Stage 21 on the Montmartre circuit, with Jasper Philipsen second and Mads Pedersen third. Remco Evenepool finished runner-up in the GC and Isaac Del Toro took third, with UAE Team Emirates-XRG sealing the overall podium as the race closed on the Champs-Élysées.
Tadej Pogačar rode solo from the break on the iconic Alpe d'Huez to win stage 19 of the Tour de France, breaking the climb's fastest ascent record. He outpaced Lenny Martinez and Richard Carapaz in the final kilometers as Remco Evenepoel chased in the GC group, boosting his yellow-jersey bid ahead of Paris.
Thousands of fans pack the Alpe d'Huez climb for stage 19, turning the 13-km ascent into a festival-like arena and prompting police to clamp down on traffic and bar riders at times; organizers fear chaos as riders and teams warn of safety risks ahead of the double-mountain finish, while Tadej Pogačar presses to defend the yellow jersey if illness clears up.
Tadej Pogačar played down talk of a collapsing UAE Team Emirates-XRG as illness hit Tour de France riders, with teammates Brandon McNulty and Tim Wellens suffering throat issues on stage 18 to Orcières-Merlette after Adam Yates had stomach problems on stage 17. McNulty abandoned stage 18 and Wellens just made the time cut, but Pogačar said the third week brings strain for all teams and expressed optimism that Adam is improving and UAE can push on toward the Alpe d’Huez days to come.
Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) won stage 17 in a dramatic breakaway–lead-out masterclass by Van der Poel, as Alpecin dominated the front of the race from Chambéry to Voiron; Pedersen defended the green jersey, GC standings stayed largely unchanged, and Adam Yates battled illness but remained in contention to the Alps.