Search our site:

Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,

Monday, June 15, 2026

Back to news and opinion index page for links to archived stories | Commentary | Our YouTube page

Men in general are quick to believe that which they wish to be true. - Julius Caesar

Les Woodland's book Cycling Heroes: The Golden Years is available in the print, Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

Upcoming racing:

June 17 - 21: Tour de Suisse
June 17 - 21: Baloise Belgium Tour

Latest completed racing:

Content continues below the ads

Tour Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes stage eight reports

We posted the race organizer's report with the results.

Here's the report from stage & GC winner Isaac Del Toro's UAE Team Emirates-XRG:

Isaac Del Toro completed a superb week of racing at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, claiming both the final stage victory and the overall classification after another dominant display in the high mountains on the race-ending summit finish to Plateau de Solaison.

The 22-year-old Mexican entered the final day within striking distance of race leader Luke Tuckwell (Red Bull Bora hansgrohe) and would put on a dominant display to claw back the yellow jersey. The 120km finale from Beaufort featured four major climbs and more than 4,000 metres of elevation gain, culminating with the brutal ascent of the Plateau de Solaison, one of the most demanding climbs of the Alps.

Isaac del Toro wins the final stage. Sirotti photo

After winning atop the Grand Colombier on Stage 7, Del Toro and UAE Team Emirates-XRG approached the final stage with clear intent. The team controlled the race throughout the mountainous parcours and arrived at the foot of the final climb with Del Toro well positioned.

As the gradients steepened on the upper slopes of Solaison, and a final push of pace from Pablo Torres, Del Toro accelerated clear of his rivals, repeating the climbing display that had earned him victory on the Grand Colombier just 24 hours earlier. The Mexican quickly opened a gap and rode alone to the summit, securing both the stage win and the overall title in emphatic fashion.

The result completes an exceptional turnaround after Del Toro entered the final mountain stages more than a minute behind race leader Luke Tuckwell following the huge breakaway that reshaped the general classification on Stage 6. Back-to-back summit victories on the Grand Colombier and Plateau de Solaison ultimately proved decisive as he overturned the deficit to take one of the most prestigious week-long stage races on the calendar.

Isaac Del Toro: “This is a very special victory for me and for the whole team. We came into the final weekend believing we could still fight for the race and everybody committed completely to that goal. The team was incredible on the final climb and all the guys worked so hard throughout the week. To win a race like this against such strong competition gives me a lot of confidence.

“I’ve learned a lot this season and now I’m excited for the next challenge. The Tour de France will be something completely new for me, but this result shows that we are moving in the right direction.”

For Del Toro, the victory adds another major stage-race success to a breakthrough 2026 campaign that has already included overall victories at the UAE Tour and Tirreno-Adriatico. The Tour Auvergne triumph, achieved on the roads traditionally used as the final proving ground before July, provides another significant marker ahead of what will be the Mexican’s first Tour de France appearance next month.

Here's the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes stage 8 report from second-place Juan Ayuso's Team Lidl-Trek:

The Spaniard Juan Ayuso finishes second on the final stage to secure a place on the overall podium, wrapping up a strong week in France

As the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes comes to a close, the Team leave with plenty to be proud of. Quinn Simmons delivered a memorable stage victory from the breakaway on Stage 4, while Juan Ayuso capped off a strong week in the mountains with back-to-back second-place finishes and third overall in the general classification.

With the overall classification still on the line this morning, the Team took control of the race from the very beginning of the stage. Determined to keep the pressure on and create opportunities for Juan and Mattias in the GC battle, the team set a relentless pace at the head of the peloton throughout the day, steadily reducing the field.

Juan Ayuso finishes stage eight. Sirotti photo

As the final climb intensified, Isaac del Toro of UAE XRG launched his winning move and managed to establish a gap. Refusing to settle for the battle behind, Ayuso immediately left the yellow jersey group in pursuit, after Skjelmose’s hard work had positioned him perfectly for the finale.

With confidence high and momentum building, the Team can take encouragement from a productive week and now turn our focus to being back here in July.

From Juan
I'm just really proud of the team and how they rode, they deserve a win.
We couldn't go to stage win and I think finishing on the podium here, I could more or less be happy. I'm super proud of how the team rode and I'm going to keep that with me.
And yeah, as I said, the road here was not super easy. Preparation was a bit more difficult than what I would have hoped for. So finishing on the podium and feeling like every day I improved and every day I was getting better. Mattias rode an amazing today for me, and I really tried to use, you know, all the force of the team to my advantage. They did a great job sacrificing themselves for me.

Content continues below the ads

Here's the report from points classification winner Nadav Raisberg's NSN Cycling Team:

Six days in the green jersey, two best-ever WorldTour results, and a huge confidence boost along the way: it has been some week for Nadav Raisberg at the Tour Auvergne – Rhône-Alpes.

The 25-year-old Israeli started the eight-day French race, which featured one of its hardest parcours in the last 25 years, largely looking to support the team’s leaders.

However, after an aggressive and incredibly determined performance, he came away as the dominant points classification winner, becoming the first rider from Israel to achieve this in a top-ranked event.

Raisberg joins an elite group of riders – Michael Woods, Stevie Williams, Ethan Vernon, and Matthew Riccitello – who have won a jersey in a WorldTour stage race for this team.

Nadav Raisberg takes home the green points jersey. Sirotti photo

“It’s just unbelievable,” he says. “I feel like I’m dreaming it. I’m super happy and super proud. For me, even getting one top-10 would have been unbelievable.

“Then, to wear this jersey for one stage, was an incredible feeling. To get two top-10s and win the jersey, it’s a dream for me.”

Consistency was the key for Raisberg, who scored points in the first five road stages, including maximum hauls at the intermediate sprints on stages one, two, four, and six.

He led the standings from stage two onwards, after spending over 215 kilometers at the front of the race in a breakaway.

Raisberg’s sprint to finish seventh at Parc des Oiseaux on stage five – notably the best WorldTour result of his three-year pro career so far – also proved invaluable.

Nonetheless, he still had to finish the race, which ended with three fearsome mountain stages. Sunday’s finale packed in over 3,800 meters of elevation in just 120 kilometers, however he easily made it home in 69th place.

He adds: “Actually, having in mind that I needed to get to the finish line, that really gave me some wind. I felt so good on the bike and I just wanted to get to the line with the jersey.”

Only Vernon – at the Tour of Guangxi in 2024 – had previously won the points classification in a WorldTour race for this team.

Raisberg now gets added to that list, which also features Woods (Tour de Suisse king of the mountains, 2021), Williams (Tour Down Under winner, 2024), and Riccitello (Vuelta a España 2025, best young rider) as the other jersey winners in the sport’s most prestigious stage races.

“Wow,” he says after discovering that list. “Now I’m one of them. Well, that makes me even more proud.”

DS Rene Mandri praised the team’s performance in the race, which culminated with George Bennett finishing 11th in this afternoon’s final stage at Plateau de Solaison.

He says: “It was a super hard race, one of the hardest we’ve had in years, but we rode really well every day. We looked for stage wins every day, we got in breakaways, and also we were present on the sprint day.

“We had a few health problems, which meant we had just three to start the final stage, but we ended on a high with George finishing 11th and Nadav securing the jersey.

“In this team, we do not have many distinctive jerseys from WorldTour races, and Nadav did brilliantly to win it. He had to race hard every day, and we’re really happy for him.”

Here's the Tour Auvergne – Rhône-Alpes report from fourth-place Matteo Jorgenson's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:

Matteo Jorgenson finished fourth overall at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The American gave everything on the demanding final climb but ultimately fell short of a place on the overall podium. Isaac del Toro won the stage and also secured the overall victory.

The queen stage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes came to life early on. On the first climb of the day, the Col du Pré, the peloton was immediately split into several groups. Jorgenson, Ben Tulett and Bruno Armirail managed to stay in the front group and headed towards the final climb together.

The race exploded on the slopes of the Plateau de Solaison. Once again, Jorgenson proved to be among the strongest riders in the peloton and remained in contention for a podium place for a long time. The 26-year-old American fought all the way to the line but ultimately came up short in the battle for the podium on the brutal final ascent. Jorgenson concludes the French stage race in fourth place in the general classification.

Matteo Jorgenson finishes stage eight. Sirotti photo

“It wasn’t my best day,” Jorgenson reflected afterwards. “The pace was incredibly high throughout the entire stage, so I quickly realised it was going to be difficult. I kept believing in myself and gave everything I had on the final climb. I fought for the win and tried to follow Del Toro for as long as possible. In the end, I blew myself up a little, but I have no regrets. I’m satisfied with my performance and it gives me motivation to improve myself on the longer climbs.”

Sports director Maarten Wynants also looked back on the past week. “Our riders have shown a high level throughout the week. Hopefully, the riders who were forced to abandon can recover well. Ben, Per and Matteo, as well as Jørgen, showed in the mountains that they are in excellent shape. It’s unfortunate that we eventually lost Jørgen, but we will take the positives with us into the upcoming races.”

Content continues below the ads

Clément Braz Afonso's Team Groupama-FDJ United posted this report:

Keeping the momentum built since last Sunday, the Groupama-FDJ United Cycling Team once again raced aggressively this weekend as the Tour Auvergne–Rhône-Alpes came to a close. Following Clément Berthet’s impressive, albeit unsuccessful, breakaway on Saturday, Clément Braz Afonso went on the attack again on Sunday and ultimately secured his lead in the mountains classification. At the summit of the final climb to Plateau de Solaison, Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet finished 16th, allowing him to slip into the overall top ten (10th). Clément Berthet ended the race in 18th place overall, while Groupama-FDJ United also finished third in the team classification.

Two huge challenges remained on an already demanding menu for the riders this weekend on the roads of the Tour Auvergne–Rhône-Alpes. After a tough appetizer towards Crest-Voland on Friday, two short but brutally mountainous stages (3,800 and 4,000 metres of elevation gain respectively) awaited for the final battles of the week. On Saturday, the peloton headed towards the legendary Grand Colombier (8.5 km at 10%), on a stage that began with three successive climbs, where Clément Braz Afonso was particularly active in defending his white-and-blue polka-dot jersey. After reaching the summit of the first two climbs in first position, he was relieved by Clément Berthet on the third, and the two teammates then found themselves together at the front heading towards the Lacets du Grand Colombier.

Stage 8 gets started. ASO photo

“The idea was to keep anticipating the race, first to collect points for the mountains jersey, which Clément Braz Afonso did very well, and then with the stage in mind, which is where Clément Berthet came into play,” explained Thierry Bricaud. With sixty kilometres remaining, the breakaway was reduced to six riders, with only one man for Groupama-FDJ United. “The pace in the Lacets was a bit too much for Clément Braz Afonso, who had already spent a lot of energy earlier in the stage,” Thierry continued. “He knew he was no longer in a position to collect more points, so he rode the rest of the day at his own pace in preparation for Sunday’s objective.”

At the front, Clément Berthet never enjoyed a significant advantage over the peloton. It was enough for him to crest both the Lacets du Grand Colombier and the penultimate climb, the Col de Richemond, in first place, but his adventure came to an end ahead of the final ascent.

“The race scenario was a bit crazy, and the peloton never really eased off,” Thierry explained. “The circumstances meant that the breakaway riders never had much of a lead, which prevented them from staying away longer. Nevertheless, it was excellent in terms of attitude. Clément also rode a strong stage, which helped boost his confidence moving forward.” On the brutally steep slopes of the Grand Colombier, Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet fought hard to limit his losses and eventually finished 17th at the summit, sliding to 11th place overall. As a conclusion, the Alpine showdown of this 78th edition of the Tour Auvergne–Rhône-Alpes awaited on Sunday, featuring the Col du Pré, Montée de Bisanne, Col des Aravis and Plateau de Solaison. Over 120 kilometres of relentless ups and downs, Clément Braz Afonso once again attacked from the gun. “I knew I needed to come over the first two climbs in first place to secure the jersey,” said Clément. “I really wanted to be in the breakaway, and I managed to make it, so I’m very happy.”

Accompanied by seven other riders, the 26-year-old first took the maximum points on the Col du Pré (7 km at 10%), before definitively securing the mountains classification by reaching the summit of the Montée de Bisanne (11 km at 7.7%) in first place. “On paper, it looked achievable to take the points on the first two climbs, but you still have to do it on the road,” Thierry pointed out. “Clément handled it perfectly and went out to claim those points in style. You don’t achieve something like that by chance after a full week of racing, especially after spending so much energy as he did. He’s riding extremely well and he’s full of confidence. That’s the most important thing.” Although his polka-dot jersey victory was already secured, Clément Braz Afonso continued his breakaway effort, although the peloton never let the leaders more than 2 minutes 30 seconds of a gap. The escapees still managed to reach the Col des Aravis first, but by the end of the long valley leading to the foot of the final climb, their lead had shrunk to around thirty seconds. The breakaway was quickly caught, the battle among the favourites began almost immediately, and Isaac del Toro soared to victory for the second consecutive day. Guillaume Martin-Guyonnet reached the summit 4 minutes and 12 seconds later in 16th place, while Clément Berthet crossed the line 4 minutes and 44 seconds behind the winner in 19th position. “Guillaume hung on really well and Clément tried to stay in contention too,” commented Thierry.

Thanks to a well-managed final climb, the French climber secured 10th place overall, while his teammate moved up to 18th place in the final standings. “We had three objectives at the start: secure the polka-dot jersey, a top-10 finish overall for Guillaume, and possibly win the team classification,” concluded Thierry. “We fell just short of the last goal, but in terms of attitude, we’re extremely satisfied with what the riders showed throughout the week. Beyond the results, that’s what we’ll remember most. The group was motivated and always willing to hit the front in pursuit of results. Commitment was there at every moment, and that’s the attitude we need to continue showing if we want to perform. Each rider followed a different approach, but this week shows their preparation was good, and some know they still have room for improvement before the Tour de France. Everything is on track, and confidence is high. That’s what matters most.”

Having secured his first secondary classification win in a WorldTour race, Clément Braz Afonso could only agree. “When I look back on my week, I can be satisfied,” he concluded. “I’m leaving with two stage top-10 finishes and this polka-dot jersey, which I really had to fight for. That’s why I’m proud of it. I loved wearing it throughout the week, but I was determined to finish the race with it. I’ve achieved that, so I’m really happy.”

Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,

Monday, June 15, 2026

Home

Racing Results & Archives

Bicycles & Cycling Lifestyle

Cycling History

Site Information