Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Sunday, August, 9, 2026
Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary | Our YouTube page
Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little. - Edmund Burke
Bill & Carol McGann’s book The Story of the Tour de France, 2022: The Fastest Tour Ever is available in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.
Current racing
- August 3 - 9: Tour of Poland
Upcoming racing:
- August 13 - 18: Arctic Race of Norway
- August 16: Cyclassics Hamburg
Latest completed racing:
- August 4 - 8: Vuelta a Burgos
- July 29 - August 2: Tour of Denmark
- August 2: Circuito de Getxo
- August 1: Clasica San Sebastian
- July 28 - 30: Tour de l'Ain
- July 4 - 26: Tour de France
- July 26: Vuelta a Castilla y Leon
- July 8 - 12: Tour of Austria
- June 24 - 28: National Championshps
- June 17 - 21: Tour de Suisse
- June 17 - 21: Baloise Belgium Tour
We posted the race organizer's report with the results.
Here's the report from stage winner Louis Barré's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Louis Barré soloed to an impressive victory in the sixth stage of the Tour de Pologne. The 26-year-old Frenchman left everyone behind in the tough finale to claim his first professional victory. Barré also moves up to second place in the overall standings. He is now three seconds behind Christian Scaroni, who takes over the GC lead from Bart Lemmen.
Louis Barré wins stage six Sirotti photo
“I finished fifth and third earlier this week, so I was determined to win a stage,” Barré said afterward. “I’ve been in excellent form for quite some time now, and I picked the right moment to attack. Today, I absolutely have to thank my teammates for all their hard work. This victory belongs to all of us. Tomorrow, I’ll give it everything I have in the time trial and see where I end up.”
On the penultimate day, the riders faced a short but demanding stage in and around Bukovina. The 125-kilometer route featured six categorized climbs. Nine riders formed the early breakaway, but the riders from Team Visma | Lease a Bike kept the peloton under control. The breakaway was caught with 35 kilometers to go. The finale featured three ascents of the Ściana Bukovina, a short but steep climb.
As the breakaway was caught, Santiago Buitrago accelerated out of the peloton, immediately followed by Barré. The two reached the foot of the final ascent of the Ściana Bukovina together. There, Barré proved to be the strongest and began his solo effort. Thanks in part to the excellent work of his Team Visma | Lease a Bike teammates, his lead was never threatened. Barré, who is in his first season in the team’s yellow-and-black colors, claimed his first professional victory.
“Louis told us early on that he was feeling good and wanted to go for the win,” sports director Robert Wagner said. “When he attacked, the team tactics were executed perfectly. Everyone on the team wants to see each other succeed, and that makes us so strong. We can say that the strongest rider won today.”
Barré moves up to second place in the overall standings. He is three seconds behind the new race leader Scaroni. Lemmen finished 15th and lost the yellow leader’s jersey. The 30-year-old Dutchman is now five seconds behind Scaroni. An individual time trial on Sunday will determine who takes the overall victory in the Tour of Poland.
“We’re in a good position in the overall standings with Louis, Bart and Wilco. Anything is still possible in tomorrow’s time trial. Our week can’t go wrong anymore. Two of our riders have claimed their first professional victories here. A spot on the final podium would be the icing on the cake,” Wagner concluded.
New GC leader Christian Scaroni's Team XDS Astana post this report:
XDS Astana Team rider Christian Scaroni finished second on Stage 6 of the Tour de Pologne and moved into the overall lead of the race ahead of the final individual time trial.
Christian Scaroni goes into the final stage wearing the GC leader's yellow jersey. Sirotti photo
The 125.5-kilometre stage started in Bukovina Resort and finished in Bukowina Tatrzańska. The stage ended with a selective uphill finish, where Christian Scaroni sprinted to second place. Thanks to the strong performance during this week of racing, the XDS Astana Team rider took over the race lead and will start the final individual time trial with a three-second advantage in the general classification.
"I'm really happy because, to be honest, today I didn't have my best legs. On the steep climb I knew I had to manage my effort and ride smart, trying to stay with the front group without going over the limit. Fortunately, I still had something left in my legs for the final push, which allowed me to finish second. It's a pity that one rider stayed away, but the team did a fantastic job throughout the stage. Bettiol also tried everything to keep the gap under control for me. Now all the focus is on tomorrow. The time trial is not my specialty, and we haven't specifically prepared for it, so we'll see how it goes. The most important thing is that I was able to respond today despite not feeling at my best. That gives me confidence heading into the final stage", — said Christian Scaroni.
Content continues below the ads
We posted the race organizer's report with the results.
Here's the report from stage winner Giulio Pellizzari's Team Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe:
Giulio Pellizzari delivered victory for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe on the fifth and final stage of the Vuelta a Burgos, attacking on the decisive ascent to the Lagunas de Neila and holding on to win by three seconds.
The 137-kilometre stage was aggressive from the opening kilometres, with repeated attacks before a breakaway eventually established itself after around 50 kilometres. Davide Donati was part of the move for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, which initially contained 15 riders and remained within reach of the peloton throughout the day. The race came back together progressively as the decisive climbs approached.
On the steep final kilometres, the group of overall contenders was quickly reduced. Pellizzari remained among the strongest riders as the attacks began, before choosing his moment with 1.4 kilometres remaining.
The Italian accelerated clear and quickly built an advantage, entering the final kilometre with a gap of more than 20 seconds. Behind, the chase intensified, but Pellizzari had done enough to stay clear and crossed the line three seconds ahead of Oscar Onley, with overall race winner Felix Gall taking third.
Giulio Pellizzarri wins Tour of Burgos stage five.
Having also finished third on stage 3, he ended the Vuelta a Burgos fourth in the final general classification, 34 seconds behind Gall.
Giulio Pellizzari:
“I had the team always with me, even when my legs were not there. So today we tried our best to take this stage, and I'm super proud of my team. I was pretty tired at the bottom of the climb, but I never stopped believing. I wanted to reward all the hard work of my teammates. I was out of GC, so the other riders were looking at each other, and I just took the moment to attack, and was able to enjoy the final metres.”
GC winner Felix Gall's Team Decathlon CMA CGM posted this:
Felix Gall: "I've gained a lot of confidence this week"
“As expected, it was a tough battle today with a very demanding stage and an extremely steep final climb—the kind of climb you only find in Spain. I’m really happy because this is my first overall victory, and it’s a real accomplishment. I had a very good high-altitude training camp in Arc 1950 and came straight here. Oscar (Onley) and Giulio (Ciccone) are very strong riders; it was a tough fight, but we managed it well as a team, and I’m glad it paid off. I’ve gained a lot of confidence this week; now I’m going to spend a few days at home before heading to the Vuelta.”
Felix Gall wins stage four.
The news: A First for Felix Gall
With this victory in the overall standings of the “ Vuelta ” in Burgos, Felix Gall adds to his list of achievements by claiming the very first overall victory of his career in a stage race. Although he had previously triumphed in the U23 category at the Istrian Spring Trophy, Felix had never before won the overall title in a professional race.
Key number: 7
Just like Léo Bisiaux’s position in the overall standings of the Vuelta in Burgos. Riding alongside Felix Gall and with the team’s support, Léo fought hard right up to the finish line and also won the best young rider’s jersey.
Content continues below the ads
Here's the report from second-place Oscar Onley's Team Netcompany INEOS:
Oscar Onley completed a strong return to the peloton at the Vuelta a Burgos with second place on the final stage and second overall.
The Netcompany INEOS rider was part of an elite selection of GC contenders on the brutal final slopes of the Lagunas de Neila climb.
Onley was able to react to each acceleration from overnight leader Felix Gall (Decathlon CMA CGM), and would eventually cross the line in second, five seconds back on stage victor Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull - Bora - Hansgrohe).
The result allowed the Brit to jump up one place to second on the final podium, just five seconds back on Gall, who finished third on the summit finish to secure key late bonus seconds. A consistent five stages allowed Onley to also claim and points and KOM jerseys.
Oscar Onley wins Vuelta a Burgos stage two.
Onley received good support from his teammates throughout the day and on the approach to the finale. A GC podium backs up his stage win on day two, capping a successful stint in Burgos.
Here's the Vuelta a Burgos final report from Pablo Torres' UAE Team Emirates-XRG:
On the fifth and final stage of the Vuelta a Burgos, young Pablo Torres produced another brave display for UAE Team Emirates-XRG. Against a big field of experienced riders, the Spaniard rode to eighth place on the final summit finish.
In doing so, the 20-year-old jumped up eight places to finish the five-day stage race in 11th place overall. It is just rewards for Torres’ efforts throughout the week, with the promising talent picking up top-10 placings in both of the race’s mountaintop finishes.
Pablo Torres earlier this year at this year's Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
On Saturday afternoon, UAE Team Emirates-XRG tried its best to land a sought-after stage victory, with Igor Arrieta and Kevin Vermaerke particularly active at the front of the race. In the end, though, the stage honours were destined to be contested between the GC contenders.
As such, Torres rallied and looked to finish as close to the front as possible. With eighth place at the line, the Spaniard was able to vault his way up the general classification and finish just outside of the top 10 overall.
Torres: “I can be very happy with my week. I think, as a team, we tried everything today to work for a stage win, but in the end, it was a big GC battle on the final climb. In this way, I tried my best to finish as high as possible, and eighth again is super positive. I have found a good level and I am looking forward to the next weeks to keep building towards La Vuelta.”
Content continues below the ads
Here's the Vuelta a Burgos stage five report from Gianmarco Garofoli's Team Soudal Quick-Step:
The last Spanish stage race scheduled before La Vuelta - the season’s third Grand Tour - Vuelta a Burgos finished this Saturday on the brutal slopes of Lagunas de Neila, the climb that has become synonymous with the race.
Gianmarco Garofoli, who came here after a solid outing at the Classic San Sebastian, went in the breakaway on the fourth stage and attacked there on the penultimate ascent to make a selection, but despite this audacious move, the peloton caught him and the battle for the stage win had the GC men as main protagonists.
Gianmarco Garofoli finishes seventh in stage 17 of the 2026 Giro d'Italia. Sirotti photo.
Despite being relatively short, Lagunas de Neila was hard enough to split the bunch and leave just a small group in contention, a group from where Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) emerged victorious. Filippo Zana was another Soudal Quick-Step rider to put in a good effort, which helped the Italian jump eight places in the final standings of the race.
And here's the Vuelta a Burgos report from Clément Berthet's Team Groupama-FDJ United:
Still in contention for a place in the top ten of the Vuelta a Burgos on Saturday morning, Clément Berthet unfortunately failed to achieve that symbolic goal. On the final climb to the Lagunas de Neila, the French climber had to cope with mixed sensations. He fought hard to finish 18th on the stage and slipped back to 12th overall. A touch of disappointment at the end of what was still an encouraging week for the Groupama-FDJ United Cycling Team.
The Vuelta a Burgos had saved the “best” for last. For the fifth and final stage, the peloton tackled the race’s most iconic climb on Saturday: the ascent to the Lagunas de Neila, featuring more than six kilometres of climbing at an average gradient of 9%. It was preceded by the Alto de Rozavientos (3.3 km at 10%), which was expected to create an initial selection. However, even before this gruelling final, the race already proved highly animated.
Clément Berthet finishes stage 9 of the 2023 Tour de France. Sirotti photo
“It was a tough stage today. There was a real battle from the start, and it took a while for the breakaway to get clear,” explained Benoît Vaugrenard. “Eventually, a group of fifteen riders got away, with Rémy among them, but they never really gained much of an advantage. Lidl-Trek and Netcompany Ineos rode behind to fight for the stage win. The gap therefore went up to around 1’15”, but not much more.” With 40 kilometres to go, the breakaway began to fall apart and the peloton caught most of the escapees, including Rémy Rochas. “Then we went back to a fairly classic race scenario,” added Benoît.
On the penultimate climb, a few accelerations came from within the peloton, which was reduced in size but remained under control. Clément Berthet made it through this first “cut” and, after the descent, was joined in the peloton by Rémi Daumas and Bastien Tronchon, as three riders were still up the road.
After a long false flat, the final climb began, and Clément Berthet managed to stay with the peloton for three kilometres before losing ground. “He wasn’t having a good day, and he paid for it a little,” Benoît explained. “He could feel it from the start. During the race, he had to change bikes after a puncture, and we could already see that he wasn’t feeling his best. On such a difficult climb, that makes a difference.” Dropped while over twenty riders still made up the peloton, the Frenchman nevertheless didn’t give up and eventually reached the summit in 18th place, 1’17” behind stage winner Giulio Pellizzari. “He hung on well and fought all the way to the finish with what he had today, and that’s what we should remember,” Benoît said. “It’s just a shame to go from ninth place overall provisionally to 12th in the final standings. A top ten would have been a great result, so there is a little disappointment, but what he showed this week is still very encouraging for what’s ahead, particularly the Vuelta.”
Although the race did not come to an end in the best possible way, Groupama-FDJ United still left Burgos with several positive results. “It wasn’t a WorldTour race, but the field certainly looked like one,” Benoît concluded. “We were where we needed to be, with three top-ten finishes on the stages and Clément delivering on two mountain stages. The icing on the cake would have been a top-ten finish overall, but what I’ll remember is the riders’ mindset. For some of them, it was also good preparation for the Vuelta, and they were able to build up some valuable racing habits together.”