Wild sprint by Van der Poel to win stage 4 of Tirreno-Adriatico 2026

Mathieu van der Poel once again left his mark on the Tirreno-Adriatico 2026 by winning the fourth stage held between Tagliacozzo and Martinsicuro (213 km). The Dutchman resolved a very nervous finish with a powerful sprint in front of a large group of favorites, thus achieving his second victory in this edition of the Italian race.

Van der Poel strikes again in the Tirreno-Adriatico with a sprint after a selective day

The day presented a deceptive profile, with two long climbs in the first half of the route and several shorter hills in the final stretch that invited attacks. Rain and cold accompanied the peloton for much of the day, making the stage even tougher and favoring a very active race from the first kilometers.

After the start in Tagliacozzo, a large breakaway formed consisting of a dozen riders from different teams. Among them were names like Ivan Garcia Cortina, Laurenz Rex, Dries De Bondt, Timo Kielich, Jonas Abrahamsen, and the Spaniard Diego Pablo Sevilla, who took the opportunity to earn more points in the mountain classification.

The group managed to hold a lead of over three minutes while the peloton, mainly controlled by the leader Isaac Del Toro's team, regulated the pace to prevent the breakaway from gaining too much margin. As the kilometers passed and the series of hills in the second half of the stage unfolded, the advantage of the escapees began to decrease until they were neutralized.

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The broken terrain at the end caused a progressive selection in the peloton. Teams like Visma-Lease a Bike increased the pace in the final climbs, and the main group was reduced to just about twenty riders.

On the final climb to Tortoreto, several attacks shook the favorites' group. Isaac Del Toro was one of the first to try his luck, closely followed by Van der Poel and Wout van Aert, while other important names were dropped at that moment.

After the summit, a very small group of riders formed to tackle the final kilometers towards Martinsicuro. Matteo Jorgenson took charge of setting the pace in the final stretch, but attempts to attack came one after another in an effort to avoid a sprint.

In the last kilometer, around a dozen riders still had options. Jan Christen tried to surprise with a late attack, but Van Aert neutralized the move and left the resolution in the hands of speed.

In that scenario, Mathieu van der Poel launched the sprint early, and no one could follow his acceleration. The Dutchman crossed the finish line clearly and secured his second stage victory in this Tirreno-Adriatico, confirming his great form in this first major stage race of the season.

Behind, the reduced group of favorites completed the finish without significant differences in the general classification, which remains very tight after another intense day in the Apennines.

Top 10 – Stage 4 Tirreno-Adriatico 2026 (Tagliacozzo – Martinsicuro, 213 km)

1. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin–Deceuninck) – 4:51:40
2. Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull–BORA–Hansgrohe) – +00
3. Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) – +00
4. Clément Champoussin (XDS Astana Team) – +00
5. Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) – +00
6. Ben Healy (EF Education–EasyPost) – +00
7. Andrea Vendrame (Jayco AlUla) – +00
8. Alessandro Pinarello (VF Group–Bardiani CSF–Faizanè) – +00
9. Filippo Ganna (INEOS Grenadiers) – +00
10. Isaac Del Toro (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) – +00