Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Tuesday, May 26, 2026
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I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. - Michael Jordan
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Current racing
- May 8 - 31: Giro d'Italia
Upcoming racing:
- May 28 - 31:
Tour of Norway - June 1 - 6: Ethias-Tour de Wallone
Latest completed racing:
- May 20 - 24: 4 Jours de Dunkerque
- May 23: Veenendaal - Veenendaal
- May 19: Classique Dunkerque
- May 17: Rund um Köln
- May 16: Tour du Finistère
- May 10: Tro-Bro Léon
- April 26 - May 3: Tour of Turkey
- April 28 - May 3: Tour de Romandie
- May 1: Eschborn-Frankfurt
- April 26: Giro dell'Appennino
- April 23 - 26: Vuelta Asturias
- April 26: Liège-Bastogne-Liège
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These reports were posted too late to be included in yesterday's news page.
Here's the Giro stage fifteen report from Paul Penhoët's Team Groupama-FDJ United:
Before entering its final stretch, the Giro d’Italia delivered two completely different stages last weekend. On Saturday, a major mountain stage allowed Jonas Vingegaard to the pink jersey in a day made for the overall contenders. On Sunday, in Milan, the sprinters were surprisingly beaten by a four-man breakaway. Fifth in the bunch sprint, Paul Penhoët consequently took ninth place on the stage. A very mountainous final week now awaits the peloton.
The day after a three-man breakaway and Josh Kench’s sixth place in Verbania, the Groupama-FDJ United cycling team understandably adopted a less aggressive approach on Saturday during a fourteenth stage featuring 4,200 metres of elevation gain in the Aosta Valley. “It was the first real mountain stage, and the whole peloton expected Visma-Lease a Bike to ride for the pink jersey,” explained William Green. “We knew the stage would probably be too difficult for Josh, so we preferred to take the risk of going all in the day before to fight for the win rather than simply trying to survive on Saturday.”
A large breakaway therefore formed without any Groupama-FDJ United riders, but it was never able to build a good lead, and Jonas Vingegaard claimed victory in Pila as expected. “The priority was to get through the stage safely,” added William. On Sunday, however, to conclude the second week, the French squad had ambitions on an extremely flat route heading to Milan.
Like all the other sprinters in the peloton, Paul Penhoët was eager to finally get his chance after a difficult week for the fast men. Yet, that was before an astonishing race scenario unfolded, as four early breakaway riders held off the chasing peloton all the way to the finish. “Three teams controlled the breakaway all day and never gave it too much of a gap,” recounted William. “The finishing circuit certainly had a few corners, but there was nothing especially technical about it. It was hard to imagine such a small breakaway, without any major rider in it, could pull off what they did. Of course, there’s always a bit of regret when you don’t make the break in situations like this, especially when you have a rider like Rémi. It could have been a great opportunity for him, but the peloton might not have let the group go if he had been part of it. Rémi also had the possibility to try if there had been six or seven riders and some strong names in the move. With the day’s composition, it didn’t look so possible, but that’s racing.”
Paul Magnier wins the bunch sprint for fifth place. Sirotti photo
Paul Penhoët, however, was able to contest the sprint nearly a minute after the breakaway crossed the line and finished fifth in the bunch, which translated into ninth place on the stage. “We had a different strategy compared to the previous sprints,” explained William. “Although the team had worked well before, it’s about finding what works for Paul. We protected him very well over four laps of the circuit, and on the final lap, the goal was to have him in a good position with two kilometres to go and stay close to him in case he needed support. A large part of the work had been done beforehand, and given the high speed of the peloton, it was probably smarter to help him in that way.” The 24-year-old rider thus secured his first top-10 finish of this Giro on the eve of the final rest day this Monday. “Tuesday’s stage will be harder than it looks, and it might be another opportunity for Vingegaard,” concluded William. “The following two days, he may not need to control the race as much, which could favor breakaways more. Stages 17 and 18 look very exciting.”
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Here's the Giro stage fifteen report from Team Polti-VisitMalta:
The Team Polti VisitMalta experienced a highly emotional day, with its riders fighting for major victories. Mirco Maestri and Mattia Bais managed to make the breakaway stick in Stage 15 of the Giro d’Italia, while Gabriele Bessega finished fourth in Belgium after taking on the peloton over the final 10 kilometres.
What initially looked like a breakaway with a predictable script, as often happens in flat stages, turned into a real threat for the sprinters chasing victory after a week in the mountains. Mattia Bais and Mirco Maestri made it into the front group together with Martin Marcellusi (BCS) and Fredrik Dversnes (UXM).
Their advantage never exceeded three minutes, but once inside the final circuit the gap remained stable. The course, fast yet dangerous at the same time, made the chase difficult. In addition, protests from the GC riders led to the general classification times being neutralised with 16 kilometres to go.
The peloton kept losing riders in the chase, and the possibility of Maestri and Bais fighting for the stage win became more realistic with every passing kilometre. They entered the final kilometre with a 21-second advantage, and Bais decided to launch Maestri’s sprint. The experienced captain of the Team Polti VisitMalta finished second, matching the result he achieved in Cesano Maderno in 2025. Mattia Bais finished in fourth place.
Mirco Maestri (red shorts) is second to Fredrik Dversnes at the end of Giro stage 15. Sirotti photo
Giovanni Ellena, the team’s sports director, commented: “When you come that close, there’s always something that hurts, but it’s better to be close and feel that disappointment than to be far away. We always try to look at the positive side.”
Mirco Maestri told the TV cameras, visibly emotional: “Normally, in stages like this, the peloton catches us, but thanks to the support of a great teammate and two strong companions in the breakaway, we didn’t watch each other too much and managed to make the unexpected happen. Maybe I could have launched the sprint a little earlier, but today the winner was simply the strongest. Not achieving the ultimate goal, despite Mattia’s work, hurts a lot — especially when we think about all the times we’ve come so close. But we will never stop trying. Bees aren’t designed to fly, yet they fly anyway… and I will keep being a bee.”
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And here's the Giro stage fifteen report from third-place Martin Marcellusi's Team Bardiani CSF 7 Saber:
A great performance by VF Group Bardiani-CSF Faizanè in the fifteenth stage of the Giro d’Italia, the 157 km Voghera–Milan stage. Martin Marcellusi claimed an impressive third place after spending the day in a breakaway formed in the opening kilometres of the race, remaining among the protagonists all the way to the finish line in the heart of Milan.
The Roman rider animated the stage together with Fredrik Dversnes, Mattia Bais and Mirco Maestri. The four escapees immediately found the right cooperation and managed to hold off the peloton throughout the stage despite the work of the sprinters’ teams behind them.
The stage fifteen break. Martin Marcellusi is the fourth rider in the line with the blue & white jersey. Sirotti photo
In the finale, on the Milan city circuit, the peloton attempted to close the gap, led mainly by Lidl-Trek and Soudal Quick-Step, but the breakaway riders held on until the final metres and contested the victory in a sprint finish. Fredrik Dversnes took the win ahead of Mirco Maestri and Martin Marcellusi, who delivered a ride full of consistency and character.
Martin Marcellusi commented after the stage:“It was truly a great day. The disappointment only goes so far because I knew the others were probably a bit faster than me in the finale, and in the last metres I could see they also had a better kick. But we did something special: we started at full gas from the very first kilometres, and honestly I didn’t think we would be able to keep that pace all the way to the finish. Instead, we managed it. This third place gives us confidence and confirms that we are working well. Today proves that you always have to believe, even when a breakaway seemingly makes no sense.”