The Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl takes yet another win this season, this one perhaps the most impressive as he was the fastest on the second day of Paris-Nice. Fabio Jakobsen beat Wout van Aert in a close sprint where Jumbo tried to surprise.
KOM leader Matthew Holmes and Philippe Gilbert (Lotto Soudal) set off in the breakaway early in the day together with Alexis Gougeard (B&B Hotels-KTM), a move that has gotten a surprisingly large lead of 6 minutes in it's maximum. The day was marked by the expected crosswind action, which took off with just under 150 kilometers to go with Wout van Aert present in a crash.
It were with 90 kilometers to go that big splits started to emerge, as several crashes dealt damage to the peloton, several groups started to come together and try to reel back the head group which quickly caught the breakaway. A sizeable peloton still emerged in the final 45 kilometers as one of the chasing groups came back. Relative calm was found afterwards.
In the final kilometers Stefan Bissegger stirred the peloton with an attack that look threatening but ended cancelled as many riders bridged across. With 7.3 kilometers to go the Swiss attacked once again and this time alone, with a small peloton led by INEOS not putting on maximum effort for a chase. With 3 kilometers to go Quick-Step put the three classics riders to the front to make sure Jakobsen would have a chance to go for the win.
The Belgian team did their job successfully, but in the final 400 meter Laporte launched his move with van Aert in the wheel, the leadout was perfect but Jakobsen had the legs to follow and then outsprint van Aert in the final meters.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
- I would love to have his inconsistency. How many wins this year? 2 TdF stages, a WC, a Euro championship, San Sebastian, multiple wins early year. Monument podiums. I'd take it. I don't think he has a chance in the TdF, but he is still amazing.mij04-11-2026
- He's not going to win the TdF. Maybe if they make every single stage a TT he could win. But I still believe Tadej would just sharpen his TT skills and win.mij04-11-2026
- You beat me to it. Should he make a full recovery (likely) and go light early in the year. One, two, three. Don't ask me, I don't give a damn. Should he be on a Feel-Like-He's-Fixin'-to-Die High.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- The deciding factor may be the (TBD) number of (any type of) kilometers without Pogacar.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- Unexplained chronic fatigue is an all too common bitch. The hard to find definitive answer may lie buried in gut mechanisms. A mystery of the deep.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- It's weird to say Evenepoel would be making a "serious mistake by adding the 2027 Giro d'Italia to his calendar, warning that such a decision could even be interpreted as a lack of confidence in his ability to win the Tour de France." It may well be a mistake but with so many commentators (of all sorts) continuously claiming almost everything Remco does as being a mistake, almost nobody should care what the pundits and the disparagers should say. His team may not want him to do the Giro, and that matters. But it's possibly or probably up to Remco to decide and it may not have to be decided on until a month or so ahead of the race. Yes , Remco is inconsistent much like the majority of the best riders but he's enjoying a period of not having been recently injured (or sick). Whatever he does he need not be concerned with critics who will second guess any perceived failure no matter what. I suspect he will have enough other races on his schedule so he won't be considering it. But the worst reason to not race it is because of what some will say - humorous that be.Yepperoni04-11-2026
- I'll say clean sweep all grand tourZamorano04-11-2026
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🏁 @FabioJakobsen remporte la 2ème étape à @OrleansMetropol ! 👏 🏁 @FabioJakobsen wins stage 2! 👏 #ParisNice
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