Visma wins the team time trial and Jorgenson strikes in the overall standings of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

The third stage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026 began to shape the general classification. In the much-anticipated 28.4-kilometer team time trial held in Perreux, Visma Lease a Bike triumphed ahead of Netcompany INEOS and Lidl-Trek, on a day where Matteo Jorgenson was one of the major winners and Alex Baudin unexpectedly managed to retain the yellow jersey.

Visma wins the team time trial of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Jorgenson strikes a blow in the general classification

The Dutch team delivered the best performance of the day thanks to a powerful finish from Jorgenson, who propelled his team to victory in the final kilometers of a technical and demanding course that included two short climbs and a slight uphill finish.

Visma wins despite losing Van Aert early

Visma's victory also had a surprising twist. Wout van Aert, one of the most important pieces of the team, dropped out very early and fell behind the group after just eight kilometers of the course had been completed.

The Belgian once again showed that, after his training accident, he is still far from his best physical condition in this phase of preparation for the Tour de France. However, the Dutch squad maintained a very high pace throughout the time trial and ultimately recorded the best time of the day.

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Jorgenson was one of the key figures in the collective effort and ended up leading Visma to a victory that seemed destined to fall in favor of INEOS Grenadiers.

Onley's mechanical failure hinders INEOS

The British team was executing a practically perfect time trial and had set the best intermediate times of the day. However, everything changed when Oscar Onley suffered mechanical issues with his chain.

INEOS chose to wait for their leader to keep their general classification hopes intact. The decision allowed Onley to return to the group, but it also cost them precious seconds that ultimately proved decisive in the battle for the stage victory.

In the end, the British team finished the day just nine seconds behind Visma.

Jorgenson gains time on Seixas and Del Toro

Beyond the stage victory, the time trial triggered the first significant movements among the favorites.

Matteo Jorgenson was one of the big beneficiaries of the day, gaining time on several of his main rivals. The American finished the stage with a lead of 45 seconds over Paul Seixas and 1 minute and 1 second over Isaac del Toro, differences that could prove very important before the arrival of the high mountains.

Lidl-Trek also delivered a solid performance, allowing Juan Ayuso and Mattias Skjelmose to limit losses on a key day for both of their aspirations.

On the other hand, UAE Team Emirates-XRG did not achieve the expected result and lost more time than anticipated in a discipline where they have historically not shone as brightly as other WorldTour teams.

EF surprises and Baudin retains the lead

The other big news of the day was the performance of EF Education-EasyPost. The team of leader Alex Baudin delivered a time trial well above expectations, achieving the third-best time of the day.

Thanks to this result, the Frenchman retained the yellow jersey after a stage that many pointed out as the most dangerous for his leadership before the arrival of the mountains.

After three days of competition, Baudin continues to lead the general classification, although the battle among the favorites has begun to intensify, and the upcoming stages promise a much more direct fight among the contenders for the final victory.