As it happened: Italian sprint star takes final stage as Isaac Del Toro takes Tirreno-Adriatico 2026 overall
Jonathan Milan came late to storm to victory with Sam Welsford and Laurenz Rex rounding off the stage podium
Tirreno-Adriatico 2026 - Preview
Tirreno-Adriatico 2026 - Route
Race Situation
Isaac Del Toro wins the GC as Jonathan Milan takes the stage
Buongiorno and welcome to Cyclingnews' live report for stage 7 of Tirreno-Adriatico 2026
It has been a wonderful 61st edition of the Race of the Two Seas with action from start to finish on a typically Tirreno-Adriatico course. Some new and exciting finishes and climbs along the way as well as a superb battle for the blue jersey.
All the stage winners, so far...
Let's take a moment to relive to epic racing of yesterday first, though. It was a magnificent day of racing with a perfectly ridden day by race leader, Del Toro. He stayed calm and just followed the moves before launching with just under 200 metres to go to take his first stage win at the race.
Jerseys:
The neutral start is in 20 minutes.
Alan Hatherly (Jayco-AlUla) has been performing superbly at this year's race and sits in 13th overall. Today is the South African's 30th birthday, quite a way to celebrate...
It is mixed feelings for Del Toro beating Pellizzari on his hometown stage yesterday as the two good friends did battle in the Marche region...
It has been a very difficult few days for local hero, Pellizzari, who feared abandoning due to tendon issues but has pushed through to likely finish second in the final GC...
Sign on is almost complete and interviews are done, the riders are ready for one final stage at this year's Tirreno-Adriatico.
The riders are in the neutralised zone.
Just 4.2km of neutral today.
Andreas Kron (Uno-X Mobility) is the latest rider to fall victim to illness and doesn't start today.
Attack
Xabier Azparren(Pinarello-Q36.5)
Dries De Bondt (Jayco-AlUla)
Roberto Carlos González (Solution Tech-Nippo-Rali)
The trio get a gap of 40 seconds over the peloton.
A new move accelerates out of the peloton to try and join the leaders.
The chaser was Carlos Samudio (Solution Tech-Nippo-Rali). The rider from Panama wasn't able to join his fellow Panamanian and teammate, González, in the break and is now in the peloton once more.
130km to go
The gap has grown rapidly and now sits at almost four minutes for De Bondt, Azparren and González.
The riders have started climbing the first ascent of the two on the menu today. This first one is not categorised. Only five, three, two and one points available today. Diego Pablo Sevilla (Polti-Visit Malta) just needs to finish to win the green KOM jersey.
Multiple teams are working together at the head of the peloton.
The riders are about to start the final climb of the race, the Ripatransone. Around 9km long at about 5% average gradient.
Jasper Philipsen speaking to TV before today... "It is a tough finish with some climbs in the middle but we'll see. It should be a nice day. We are a week in and legs are tired, I feel good and made a good step and I'm looking forward to today. I am also looking forward to Milan-Sanremo next week."
Alpecin-Premier Tech seem to be really testing the legs of some of the purer sprinters with almost the entire team on the front. Some gaps are starting to appear in the bunch as well.
Van der Poel hits the front with Philipsen on the front. They are absolutely flying up the Ripatransone climb. Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor) and Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) right at the front. Multiple riders losing touch.
Ineos Grenadiers having to close the gap to a very select group at the front of the peloton.
Pellizzari has missed the split with race leader Del Toro on the back wheel of Philipsen.
Out front, Azparren is pushing hard with González as De Bondt is starting to really hurt.
Philipsen is starting to drop back through the group as Van der Poel is absolutely hammering the tempo on the front.
Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Intermarche), Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), Madis Mihkels (EF Education-EasyPost) and more are really struggling with this pace.
About 30 riders or less are now moving away from the rest of the peloton.
Danny van Poppel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) abandons the race.
Ineos Grenadiers have really been caught out with Sam Welsford out the back. Wout Van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) has also lost touch.
Van der Poel still obliterating the peloton. Philipsen is still in this front group.
De Bondt has recovered well with González and Azparren still out front as a trio. Only by nine seconds, though.
Tobias Lund Andresen (Decathlon-CMA CGM) is still in the lead group who are just about to catch the break.
Breakaway caught with 92km to go.
Around 20 seconds splitting the lead group and the rest of the peloton led by Ineos Grenadiers.
Van Aert recovered very well and did manage to get to the front group before the race split.
KOM (Ripatransone)
1. Van der Poel 5pts
2. Del Toro 3pts
3. Roglič 2pts
4. Jorgenson 1pt
Pellizzari also right up to the front of the front group.
It appears that Philipsen has been dropped by his teammate, Van der Poel. The former world champion is still riding very hard still, though.
De Lie is over a minute down on the lead group. Pavel Bittner (Picnic-PostNL) is also off the back.
Ineos Grenadiers pushing hard in the peloton just 26 seconds behind the Van der Poel led front group.
Magnier and Milan are in the peloton with Welsford and, we believe, Philipsen who seems to have been distanced by the front group.
Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers) is waving for the camera motorbike to go further away as he believes that the moto is assisting Van der Poel.
The descending is done and the flat roads begin. You can immediately tell this as the gap between the lead group and the peloton has shrunk to 18 seconds.
The race enters the finishing circuit for five laps in San Benedetto del Tronto.
Another abandon, Mattia Stenico (Bardiani CSF-7 Saber)
The peloton appears to be about 10 seconds off the back of the lead group now.
The peloton finally makes contact with the back of the lead group with Jan Christen (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) doing the work in the chase so he can support his leader, Del Toro.
Van der Poel finally pulls off the front with Soudal-QuickStep taking over the pacing.
De Lie is almost two minutes behind the peloton.
Visma-Lease a Bike have the entire team on the front of the peloton, interestingly.
Visma-Lease a Bike may actually be working for Jorgenson to have a go at the bonus seconds in the intermediate sprint as he sits one second behind Pellizzari in the GC.
Bike change for De Lie, his day going from bad to worse!
Some interesting news coming out of the race is that Javier Romo (Movistar) allegedly grabbed the neck of Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike) after stage 6 yesterday. The news was reported yesterday on Het Laatste Nieuws, Feltet and Velora.
Azparren caught by the Visma-Lease a Bike led peloton as they really have the pace very high with Tim Rex leading the train of yellow and black.
The average speed after two hours of racing is 45.5kph. This is absolutely rapid and that is with almost all of the 1100 metres of elevation done as well.
De Lie has teammates, Huub Artz, Liam Slock and George Zimmermann with him as well as Sevilla, Alexandre Balmer (Solution Tech-Nippo-Rali) and Luca Mozzato (Tudor) at one minute and 20 seconds behind the peloton.
2.5km to go until the intermediate sprint.
De Lie and co are now just 47 seconds behind the peloton.
Intermediate sprint (San Benedetto del Tronto)
1. Jorgenson 5pts 3"
2. Van Aert 3pts 2"
3. T. Johannessen 2pts 1"
4. Roglič 1pt
Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) needed to take the maximum five points in the intermediate sprint to take the points jersey from Del Toro but instead only took two leaving him two points behind the race leader.
De Lie and co are now 52 seconds back.
De Lie, Zimmermann, Slock, Artz, Mozzato, Balmer and Sevilla make it back to the peloton after a hellish chase since being dropped on the climb.
Two laps of the circuit to go.
Decathlon-CMA CGM and UAE Team Emirates-XRG lead the peloton with 25km to go.
Bike change for Ivan Garcia Cortina (Movistar)
The race has settled into the familiar pattern of the build up towards a bunch sprint.
Covi and De Bondt are caught.
One lap to go in Tirreno-Adriatico 2026.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG leading the peloton.
Ineos Grenadiers are trying to move up the left side of the peloton to set up Welsford.
Picnic-PostNL moving up for Bittner as they still search for their first win of the season.
VIsma-Lease a Bike, Pinarello-Q36.5, Picnic-PostNL, Decathlon-CMA CGM, Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates-XRG lead the peloton with 8km to go.
Louis Vervaeke (Soudal-QuickStep) leads the chase of Abrahamsen with 6km to go, the big Norwegian has 10 seconds on the bunch.
Visma-Lease a Bike, Pinarello-Q36.6, Picnic-PostNL and Ineos Grenadiers all now come back to the front with 4km to go to try and bring Abrahamsen back again.
Just 3km to go with Bahrain Victorious and Tudor taking over on the front. Abrahamsen has 11 seconds on the peloton.
The peloton makes a big acceleration for the first tight corner.
Abrahamsen has nine seconds with 2km to go.
500 metres to go with Abrahamsen still leading with Ganna controlling the peloton.
400 metres to go and Abrahamsen is caught with Milan coming up very fast.
Jonathan Milan wins stage 7 of Tirreno-Adriatico for the third year in a row!
Isaac Del Toro was caught up in the late crash but he rolled across the line with no worries as they were well inside the final 3km as he crossed the line with most of his teammates.
Jonathan Milan after stage 7 speaking to TV "I was painful. But there is happines. It was tough week, tough day. I suffered on the climbs and today also was absolutely not easy. I have to say thanks to all of my teammates.
Final General Classification
1. Isaac Del Toro (MEX) UAE Team Emirates-XRG 28:02'14"
2. Matteo Jorgenson (USA) Visma-Lease a Bike +40"
3. Giulio Pellizzari (ITA) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe +42"
4. Tobias Halland Johannessen (NOR) Uno-X Mobility +1'14"
5. Primož Roglič (SLO) Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe +1'21"
6. Giulio Ciccone (ITA) Lidl-Trek +1'26"
7. Santiago Buitrago (COL) Bahrain Victorious +1'49"
8. Ben Healy (IRE) EF Education-EasyPost +1'55"
9. Magnus Sheffield (USA) Ineos Grenadiers +2'02"
10. Alessandro Pinarello (ITA) NSN +2'06"
Isaac Del Toro becomes the first ever Mexican to win Tirreno-Adriatico with Matteo Jorgenson becoming only the third American to podium the race after Christian Horner in 2011 and Greg Lemond in 1982.
Del Toro is also the youngest winner since Thomas Dekker in 2006.
Make sure to read our post race report and all the reaction of the final day of the Race of the Two Seas...
Final jerseys:
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
