Results Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026 Stage 8 - Isaac del Toro completes turnaround with dominant stage and GC double on final climb

Isaac del Toro turned the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes upside down on the final climb to Plateau de Solaison, winning stage 8 and the overall title as Luke Tuckwell finally cracked in yellow.

The UAE Team Emirates - XRG rider began the final stage 49 seconds behind Tuckwell, with Matteo Jorgenson second overall at 42 seconds and Juan Ayuso also within range at 1:06. On a 120.1km route from Beaufort to Plateau de Solaison, the final 11.5km ascent became the decisive battleground.

UAE took command at the foot of the climb, with Del Toro still supported by team-mates as the early break came back into range. Tuckwell was soon distanced, with Maxim Van Gils dropping back to help his Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe team-mate, while Cian Uijtdebroeks also lost contact from the favourites’ group.

Del Toro then attacked with 9km still to climb. No one could follow the Mexican, who surged across to the remnants of the early break and quickly opened a gap that put him into the virtual race lead.

The final stage had started aggressively, with Laurens De Plus, Carlos Rodriguez, Georg Steinhauser, Valentin Paret-Peintre, Harold Tejada and Clement Afonso Braz among those who went clear over the opening climbs. Afonso Braz used that early phase to secure the mountains classification, while De Plus later led over the Col des Aravis before the long descent towards the final ascent.

Lidl - Trek had controlled much of the middle phase in support of Ayuso, but once the race reached Plateau de Solaison, UAE took over. Paret-Peintre tried to move clear from the break before the favourites arrived, with De Plus chasing behind, but the GC battle soon swallowed the front of the race.

Del Toro’s attack immediately changed the balance. Mattias Skjelmose led the chase behind for Lidl - Trek, with Ayuso and Jorgenson together at first, but the gap kept growing. Once Del Toro’s advantage reached around 35 seconds, Tuckwell’s hold on yellow was slipping away.

Ayuso launched his own move with 5km still to climb. Jorgenson initially followed, but then cracked, while Tobias Halland Johannessen and Rodriguez were also unable to match the Spaniard. Ayuso continued alone in pursuit, but Del Toro was already moving further clear up the road.

Paul Seixas’ race ended before the final GC battle began. The Decathlon CMA CGM Team rider started the day sixth overall after his bruising crash and long chase on stage 7, but struggled at the back of the peloton, lost contact after visiting the medical car and then abandoned early in the stage.

His withdrawal removed one of the main pre-stage storylines, leaving Decathlon without their GC leader on a day where Paret-Peintre and Leo Bisiaux had both been placed in the early move.

Tuckwell’s surprise spell in yellow ended on the upper slopes of Plateau de Solaison, where Del Toro turned a 49-second deficit into overall victory with one devastating attack. After winning on the Grand Colombier on stage 7, the Mexican delivered again on the final day, closing the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes with back-to-back mountain victories.