Results Giro del Veneto 2026: Alessandro Covi denies Charmig and Cosnefroy to take uphill sprint despite McNulty's UAE lead-out
Cycling
Alessandro Covi has denied UAE Team Emirates - XRG victory at the Giro del Veneto, capitalising on Brandon McNulty's leadout for Benoit Cosnefroy with an enduring uphill sprint to the line.
With an exciting start list for one of the season's last opportunities for victory in Italy, a route of 167 kilometres brought riders from Verona to Vicenza as five laps of a demanding finishing circuit meant that the race would go over the Monte Berico climb on five occasions.
An eight-rider strong breakaway would set the day's pace, but the attackers got out of the blocks fast as the race opened up from less than 60 kilometres to go saw the peloton do battle as the breakaway in front broke apart before the finale.
But first, an all-Italian group went ahead around 30 kilometres into the day. Included in the break were Giacomo Garaviglia, Francesco Carollo, Tammaso Nencini, Kevin Pezzo Rosola, Leonardo Volpato, Thomas Rossetti, Andrea Scarso and Riccardo Lorello.
There were splits in the peloton at various points of the race as the pace remained high. Before the attacks in the bunch reeled in the break, some inside battling saw Scarso dropped from the break before Pezzo Rosola and Nencini also were dropped.
Brandon McNulty was one of the favourites ahead of the race
Breakaway reeled in as bunch keeps pace high for finale
With 50 kilometres to go, the bunch could see the five remaining riders as they had caught up to a matter of seconds from their catch. However, a caught breakaway with 45 kilometres to go and three laps remaining would by no means spell calm within the peloton.
Andrea Pietrobon attacked solo with 38 kilometres to go, building a small gap but was then caught with 30 kilometres to go. UAE Team Emirates - XRG proved a constant fixture at the front as both Pavel Sivakov and Antonio Morgado worked at the front.
As the peloton crossed the line for the penultimate time, Brandon McNulty made his move as he launched from the bunch, with a handful of riders able to bridge across. Those included Fabio Christen, Marc Hirschi, Christian Scaroni and Jonas Abrahamsen.
McNulty soon cooled his attack as it appeared the peloton in chase were still close by. In doing so, Hirschi and Christen saw the change of pace and counter-attacked, building a gap of over ten seconds as the chaser's re-organised and McNulty continued to lead the chase.
McNulty cools attack as Hirschi and Christen go alone
With just over eight kilometres to go, Scaroni wouldn't give up the chase as he tried to bridge across. But it seemed in vain as McNulty helped bring the remainder of the peloton to the front, re-setting the race with five kilometres to go as the American seemingly controlled for teammate Benoit Cosnefroy, who was still in the group.
A 600-metre uphill kicker to the line came to the front of the mind of the remaining 40 or so riders as a cagey final kilometres loomed and most of the pre-race favourites sized up their chances.
Into the final kilometre, McNulty upped the pace at the front with Cosnefroy on his wheel. However, as the gradient ramped up, Alessandro Covi came to the front to hold off the UAE rider and complete an enduring uphill sprint as the Team Jayco AlUla rider threw his hands up at the line.
Uno-X Mobility rider Anton Charmig took second place while Cosnefroy had to settle for third, rounding out the podium.
Results Giro del Veneto 2026
| 1 | COVI Alessandro | Team Jayco AlUla |
| 2 | CHARMIG Anthon | Uno-X Mobility |
| 3 | COSNEFROY Benoît | UAE Team Emirates - XRG |
| 4 | CHRISTEN Fabio | Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team |
| 5 | SCARONI Christian | XDS Astana Team |
| 6 | FANCELLU Alessandro | MBH Bank CSB Telecom Fort |
| 7 | ADRIÀ Roger | Movistar Team |
| 8 | IZQUIERDO Clément | Cofidis |
| 9 | CRESCIOLI Ludovico | Team Polti VisitMalta |
| 10 | VELASCO Simone | XDS Astana Team |
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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