“I told Guillaume: ‘Go full gas until you die’” – Bastien Tronchon stuns Wout van Aert and Visma to claim biggest win of his career at La Vuelta
CyclingTuesday, 01 September 2026 at 17:32
Bastien Tronchon could hardly believe he had won Stage 10 of the 2026 Vuelta a Espana. In fact, the Groupama - FDJ United rider crossed the line without celebrating because he was not certain every attacker had been caught.
The confusion reflected a chaotic finish in Elche de la Sierra. Team Visma | Lease a Bike had controlled much of the stage for Wout van Aert, with Matthew Brennan eventually sacrificing his own prospects to close Walter Calzoni’s late attack inside the final two kilometres.
That effort brought the reduced peloton back together, but Visma had no organised lead-out left when Yevgeniy Fedorov and Xabier Mikel Azparren launched another move approaching the final kilometre. Tronchon emerged from the disorder to defeat Magnus Cort and Thibau Nys, securing the first Grand Tour stage victory of his career.
“I launched my sprint and finished on the line – I wasn’t sure if there were some guys in front,” Tronchon admitted in his post-stage interview. “I didn’t put my hands in the air. It’s crazy – I can’t believe it.”
“Go full gas until you die”
Tronchon’s victory was built around a blunt instruction to Groupama teammate Guillaume Martin during the rising approach to the finish.
With the established sprint trains broken apart and attacks continuing at the front, Martin’s task was to keep the pace as high as possible and deliver Tronchon into a position from which he could launch his sprint. “The last few days were really hard for me,” the Frenchman explained. “Today I was good and I told Guillaume: ‘Go full gas until you die,’ and I took the win.”
Martin committed fully to the request, helping Tronchon remain within striking distance as Fedorov and Azparren attempted to exploit the hesitation behind. Once those late attackers were within reach, Tronchon still had enough left to beat two proven fast finishers to the line.
It completed a significant upset after Visma had shaped much of the stage around Van Aert and Brennan. Brennan repeatedly followed attacks on the Puerto de Socovos before performing the final chase for Van Aert, but Tronchon capitalised when their control disappeared during the final kilometre.
Difficult preparation gives way to career-defining victory
The result carried additional significance after a difficult build-up to the season and several demanding days during the opening week of the Vuelta.
“My preparation this year wasn’t very good, so I didn’t expect this,” Tronchon said. Rather than allowing that disrupted preparation to define his race, he continued: “I just had to trust the process, to race and go for it.”
Stage 10 rewarded that persistence with the biggest victory of his career. Tronchon had entered the finale outside the leading group of favourites, but the combination of Martin’s commitment, Visma’s depleted resources and his own finishing speed created an opportunity.
He recognised it quickly enough to win, even if it took several more seconds before he realised there was nobody left ahead of him.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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