“A lot of guys were dive-bombing each other” - Sam Welsford reflects on chaotic, crash-marred Tirreno-Adriatico finale

Sam Welsford came within touching distance of victory on the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico 2026, but the Australian sprinter ultimately had to settle for second place behind Jonathan Milan after a chaotic sprint finale in San Benedetto del Tronto.

The closing kilometres of the race were thrown into turmoil when a crash in the final bends took down several riders, including Paul Magnier and Jasper Philipsen. Welsford himself was positioned close to the barriers at the time and narrowly avoided becoming involved in the incident.

“A lot of guys were dive-bombing each other in that corner,” Welsford said afterwards in conversation with Cycling Pro Net. “When you’ve got four guys going for the same metre of road, that’s always going to happen.”

The INEOS Grenadiers rider admitted the situation was dangerously close for those fighting for position at the head of the peloton. “It was really close to me, and thankfully I’m alright,” he added. “Hopefully, all the guys who went down are okay because you never want to see that on the last day of the race.”

Even before the crash chaos of the finale, the final stage had already proven far from straightforward for the fast men.

On the climb of Ripatransone, the pace of the peloton exploded when Mathieu van der Poel pushed the tempo at the front, forcing many sprinters to fight simply to remain in contention. “The climb was so hard,” Welsford explained. “They just rode incredibly fast to try and drop the sprinters.”

Despite the intensity of the effort, the Australian said he felt surprisingly strong as the race split under the pressure. “I actually felt really good on the climb, and I had the guys around me helping,” he said. “Every time I looked down, I was doing over 500 watts, and we still weren’t catching them.”

The effort from his teammates proved crucial in keeping him in the race as the stage returned to the flat roads along the Adriatic coast. “The boys did a fantastic job pacing me and looking after me to get me over the climb,” Welsford said. “Then, in the circuits, we had to chase pretty hard to close the split. I think Van der Poel was pulling that almost by himself, which made it quite hard for us.”

Once the race regrouped and the expected bunch sprint materialised, Welsford found himself in a strong position in the final metres as the peloton thundered towards the finish line along the seafront in San Benedetto del Tronto.

But despite the work of his teammates throughout the stage, Milan proved the fastest in the chaotic run to the line. “That was a crazy finish,” Welsford reflected. “The boys did an amazing job for me today, and I felt really good. I’m a bit disappointed with second because you always want to be on the top step.”

Even so, the result left the Australian optimistic about what lies ahead as the season moves deeper into the spring. “I’m happy with the result, but you always want more,” he concluded.