Benoît Cosnefroy finishes second overall at the Tour de Hongrie

Finishing safely inside the peloton on the final day of racing, Benoît Cosnefroy sealed his second place overall at the Tour de Hongrie. The result marks the Frenchman’s first GC podium since making the winter switch to UAE Team Emirates-XRG.

It was anything but a routine final stage in Hungary, with Cosnefroy one of several UAE Team Emirates-XRG riders who looked to make stage 5 as tough as possible for their opponents. Beginning the day 40 seconds behind the race leader, and eventual winner, Jakob Söderqvist (Lidl-Trek), Cosnefroy had to do something out of the ordinary to steal a march.

Springing a surprise is well within the Frenchman’s playbook. After all, Cosnefroy did turn the tables on stage 2 and ride away to a solo victory, much to the chagrin of the sprinters who had planned to contest the day’s honours in a bunch kick.

This time, however, the fast men would not be stopped.

With a little over 20km of stage 5 to ride, Cosnefroy and his teammates, Vegard Stake Laengen, Adrià Pericas and Sebastián Molano, all made the most of crosswinds to force their way into the front echelon. It was a situation that looked promising, but a touch of wheels brought down Söderqvist, and that incident dampened enthusiasm for the late breakaway.

In the end, a move involving Luke Plapp of Jayco AlUla, third placed at the start of the day, sought its fortune. But their efforts would not stop the peloton from making the catch in sight of the finish. Thanks to the efforts of Stake Laengen, Pericas, and Cosnefroy, UAE Team Emirates-XRG joined forces with Lidl-Trek and Soudal Quick-Step to make sure that a bunch sprint decided the stage victory.

From that peloton, Molano tried his luck and rode to 11th place, as Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) picked up his third stage of the week.

Although his late attack in the crosswinds did not prevail, Cosnefroy rolled across the line to take second position in the general classification. The result was no less than the Frenchman deserved, who animated the racing all week and can leave Hungary with sweet memories of his stage 2 victory.

Reflecting on the week, the 30-year-old was content with his and his team’s effort.

Cosnefroy: “We can be happy with our week in general – our stage victory was a beautiful one. Obviously we would have liked the overall victory too but it wasn’t to be. Personally I’m on a strong run of form and hope to continue it into the next part of the season.”

Tour de Hongrie 2026 stage 5 results:

1. Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) 3:29:36

2. Alexis Renard (Cofidis) s.t

3. Fernando Gaviria (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) s.t

Tour de Hongrie 2026 final general classification after stage 5:

1. Jakob Söderqvist (Lidl-Trek) 16:57:21

2. Benoît Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +40″

3. Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla) +49″

7. Adrià Pericas (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +1:21

At the Volta a Portugal do Futuro, UAE Team Emirates Gen Z capped off a fantastic week of racing with its third stage victory of the week and the overall title.

As Davide Stella rode to the stage 4 win, his teammate Matvei Boldyrev rolled safely across the finish line to win the general classification for the Emirati development squad. Following Boldyrev’s two stage victories from the opening days of the race, Stella’s success was the icing on the cake to a brilliant race.

For the young Italian sprinter, stage 4 offered a wonderful opportunity to fight for the honours, and the UAE Team Emirates Gen Z rider did not turn down the chance.

After a horror crash suffered at the AlUla Tour whilst riding for the WorldTour outfit in January, the Volta a Portugal do Futuro marked the first stage race for Stella since his rehabilitation. In the months that have passed since hitting the deck in the Middle East, the 20-year-old has worked tirelessly to get back to race-winning form, and he proved his strength on Sunday.

In the final sprint to the line in Portugal, Stella was the fastest of the lot, and roared across the line in celebration. It was an emotional moment for the Italian, and a brilliant moment for his Gen Z teammates, who were able to celebrate Boldyrev’s overall success.

In winning the general classification, the 18-year-old has claimed his first stage race success in UAE Team Emirates colours, and the future looks bright based on this performance. Boldyrev ultimately finished the Volta a Portugal do Futuro with a lead of almost two minutes to his nearest rival from another team.

To make the race even more of a success for UAE Team Emirates Gen Z, the second spot on the final podium was taken by its young Spanish talent, Jaime Torres. The climber has ridden a consistent week to stand alongside his teammate Boldyrev on the podium.

Photo credit: @rodrigorodriguesphotography on Instagram

Volta a Portugal do Futuro 2026 stage 4 results:

1. Davide Stella (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z) 3:10:52

2. Albert Roca (Caja Rural-Alea) s.t

3. João Martins (Portugal) s.t

9. Marcos Freire (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z) s.t

Volta a Portugal do Futuro 2026 final general classification after stage 4:

1. Matvei Boldyrev (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z) 14:19:54

2. Jaime Torres (UAE Team Emirates Gen Z) +1:27

3. Jesse Maris (Technosylva Rower Bembibre) +1:49