Andrew Augut gives victory to INEOS Grenadiers-TotalEnergies in the 3rd Stage of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana

Calm stage ahead of the general classification in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, awaiting the mountainous day they will face tomorrow in the ports of Marina Alta in Alicante. A day in which a small group managed to evade the group's vigilance to avoid the sprint that was scripted as the most likely outcome.

Biniam Girmay continues to hold the lead in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana

Practically flat stage for the third route of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana 2026, except in the final third where the race ventured into the interior of the province to seek the Tibi port, a gentle ascent that, at first glance, lacked sufficient difficulty to cause differences.

From the day's breakaway, 5 cyclists would arrive prominently at the foot of this ascent: Axel van der Tuuk, Mattia Bais, Pablo García, Raúl García Pierna, and Matteo Fabro. The one who contributed the most to ensure the breakaway succeeded was the Madrid native from Movistar, who, although he managed to break away with Mattia Bais after cresting the port, would ultimately be caught 29 km from the finish thanks to the push from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe.

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It was a matter of catching up, and taking advantage of a second section of hills, Remco Evenepoel tried to shake up the race, although it was only an illusion as the terrain did not offer the necessary toughness to break the race apart. Already in the final stretch leading to the finish, the German team shifted the responsibility onto the NSN of leader Biniam Girmay. Taking advantage of a moment of pause, Florian Vermeerch surprised and opened a small gap.

He was joined in the break by Andrew August from INEOS, Adne Holter from Uno-X, and Jonathan Vervenne from Soudal, and they managed to establish enough understanding to maintain a slim gap of about 15 seconds that allowed them to arrive with options to the finishing straight.

When they could already feel the breath of the peloton, the young gem from INEOS took the opportunity to be the first to launch the finish while the rest were more concerned about whether the peloton would catch up or not. A surprise factor that earned him his first victory as a professional.

Stage 3 Classification

1. Andrew August (INEOS Grenadiers-TotalEnergies) 3h20’54”
2. Adne Holter (Uno-X Mobility) +00”
3. Florian Vermeerch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +00”
4. Jonathan Vervenne (Soudal-QuickStep) +02”
5. Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling) +04”
6. Ben Turner (INEOS Grenadiers-TotalEnergies) +04”
7. Magnus Cort (Uno-X Mobility) +04”
8. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) +04”
9. Mirco Maestri (Polti-Visit Malta) +05”
10. Aleksandr Vlasov (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +05”

General Classification

1. Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling) 6h24’29”
2. Adne Holter (Uno-X Mobility) +00”
3. Florian Vermeerch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +02”
4. Mats Wenzel (Kern Pharma) +06”
5. Mattia Bais (Polti-Visit Malta) +07”
6. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +09”
7. Aleksandr Vlasov (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +10”
8. Ben Turner (INEOS Grenadiers-TotalEnergies) +10”
9. Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek) +10”
10. Mikel Retegi (Kern Pharma) +10”