Double triumph: Almeida & Baroncini shine at Suisse and Belgium Tours

UAE Team Emirates-XRG capped a landmark weekend with a sensational double victory as João Almeida clinched the overall title at the Tour de Suisse, while Filippo Baroncini sealed his first General Classification triumph at the Baloise Belgium Tour. The two victories also marked a major milestone for the team—the 50th win of the 2025 season.

João Almeida produced a clinical ride on the final Stage 8 uphill time trial, overturning a 33-second deficit to leapfrog Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa–B&B Hotels) and secure overall victory at the Tour de Suisse.

Almeida’s win in the 10.1 km mountain test confirmed his consistency and tactical brilliance throughout the week having clawed back seconds since losing over three minutes on a wet stage 1. He would go on to redeem himself with three stage victories and also claimed the black points jersey.

Almeida : “I’m super happy. I did a good climb, and I was feeling really good. I think I started too fast, I over paced in the beginning. In the end, I hoped to have enough gas to push in the last kilometre, but in the end it was not necessary.

One mistake can cost you a lot; luckily, we could make it up. At the end of the day, it’s a lesson: you should never give up. Sometimes things go wrong and nothing is perfect, but you need to keep trying. We kept trying and we did it. I’ll have time to enjoy this win and I’ll be ready for the Tour de France. I’ll support Tadej Pogačar there and hope we can get more great wins.”

Stage 8 results

1.Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 27:33

2.Felix Gall (Decathlon-AG2R) +24”

3.Oscar Onley (Team Picnic PostNL) +1’11”

Final General Classification

1.Joao Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 29:29:01

2.Kevin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels) +1’07”

3.Oscar Onley (Picnic- PostNL) +1’58”

Meanwhile, Filippo Baroncini wrapped up a breakthrough performance at the Baloise Belgium Tour, defending his overall lead on the final flat stage in Brussels to claim his first-ever stage race GC victory.

The Italian moved into the violet leader’s jersey after Stage 4 in Durbuy and, with the full backing of the UAE Team Emirates-XRG squad, held off all challengers to seal the overall classification by a slim but decisive margin.

Baroncini: “I came into the race in good shape from the Giro, so I knew if things went our way this week something was possible. The goal was to win with the team because Florian was also flying. Stage 4 was a great stage for me, the group stayed away and while I didn’t win the stage I was able to take the crucial time I needed in the GC .Today the team worked perfectly to defend the jersey so it was an excellent week overall.“

Sebastian Molano also performed well on the final stage, taking second place behind winner Tim Merlier (Soudal – Quickstep).

Stage 5 results

1. Tim Merlier (Soudal – Quickstep) 3:56:38

2.Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

3.Kim Heiduk (Ineos – Grenadiers) s.t

Final General Classification

1.Filippo Baroncini (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 16:39:07

2.Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quickstep) +4”

3.Jenno Berckmoes (Lotto) +7”