AJ August announces himself as next young star with stage win, Seixas claims overall in Basque Country
CyclingSaturday, 11 April 2026 at 17:45
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Follow us on GoogleAJ August (INEOS Grenadiers) won the final stage of the Tour of the Basque Country from the breakaway on Saturday. The 20-year-old American rode clear of the competition on the final climb. Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) confirmed his overall victory without stress.
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The Tour of the Basque Country could until now largely be described as the Tour of Seixas. The 19-year-old Frenchman from Decathlon CMA CGM won three of the first five stages and held a commanding lead in the general classification of the WorldTour race.
A final stage in which we saw the Basque Country in all its glory: rain lashed and bloewing a gale. In the first five days we had a taste of summer, but on the final day the riders had to endure heavy rain as well as steep climbs. Ben Tulett (Visma | Lease a Bike), Ilan Van Wilder (Soudal Quick-Step) and Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor) were among many riders who decided to abandon the race.
Continue reading below the photo.
Seixas looks for competition at the Tour of the Basque Country.
Big names show themselves at the front
The stage could be described as a short (135 kilometres) but powerful (six climbs) loop around Eibar. On the first ascent we immediately saw a split: heavyweights Ben Healy (EF), Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) and Marc Soler (UAE Emirates-XRG) went on the attack, with Peter Oxenberg (INEOS) and Juan Pedro López (Movistar) in their wake.
Behind them, a large group of 32 riders formed, including four riders from Visma | Lease a Bike and the Uno-X team of Tobias Halland Johannessen. In that peloton there were no riders who posed a direct threat to Seixas's lead, and so Decathlon CMA CGM — who had Matthew Riccitello in the breakaway — let the race unfold.
In the pouring rain, however, attacks could not be prevented. Javier Romo (Movistar) rode clear from the peloton with 58 kilometres to go, which forced Seixas to come out of his shell early in the race. A kilometre and a half later, the 19-year-old opened the door himself, leaving the competition behind immediately. Case closed?
Read on below the video!
Seixas in no man's land
Seixas found himself swimming alone between the two large groups. Riding straight to the front proved a pipe dream, however, as the cooperation in the breakaway remained strong on the flat intermediate section. The same applied to the chasing group, which caught the Frenchman, showing the young race leader maybe still has a thing or two to learn.
On the final climb of the day the breakaway blew apart, with AJ August (INEOS) setting the key move in motion. The young American crested the summit of the final climb solo, although Raúl García Pierna (Movistar) put up a brave fight taking second. Frank van den Broek finished a strong third for Picnic-PostNL.
INEOS add to strong tally, Seixas wins first WorldTour stage race win
AJ August adds to INEOS Grenadier's strong start to 2026, taking the team's tally to 16. His teammate Axel Laurance won the fourth stage in the Basque Country, also from the break, proving there is a good feeling at the British team.
Seixas, meanwhile, kept relatively quiet and knew there was little more to gain, crowning himself the overall winner of this fine edition of the Tour of the Basque Country in consolidation mode. Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X) managed to ride himself onto the final podium after a strong day.
Stage 6 results & final classification Tour of the Basque Country 2026
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Tom van der Salm (27) comes from the charming town of Zeilberg (Deurne) in the Netherlands and has been working as editor-in-chief & journalist at IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, In de Leiderstrui, since 2019. He travels with the peloton from the Tour de France to the AlUla Tour and from the World Championships in Rwanda or Canada to the Zilvermeercross in Mol. In his spare time he enjoys playing football, mountain biking, running, walking with his Labrador/Stabyhoun, investing, holidays, (specialty) beers, reading, cooking and watching sports & documentaries!
Contact: [email protected]
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Latest Comments
- - Enric saying “limit the damage” feels right, but he can’t keep giving Pog 5–10 seconds every summit. Minor gripe: the article glosses over Gall’s watts—would’ve loved some data. Grande etapa, pero faltan números, no?lindae28-08-2026
- - Red Bull-BORA with Roglič a minute back—does that gap matter this early or is it normal to let Pogačar have a cushion before the high mountains/time trial? Also, is Stage 9 a proper queen stage or just media hype?cadencekingm28-08-2026
- - Quick question: why did Decathlon take it up if it helped Pog in the end? Wouldn’t it have been better to sit on UAE’s tempo and wait? I’m still figuring out how these team tactics work on summit finishes.julien28-08-2026
- - Not sure I buy Mas’ “frustrated” angle. Pogacar just rode the numbers when Gall opened the gap, then closed and added six seconds for free. If that’s irritation, I hope my GC leader gets angry like that every day.samanthak28-08-2026
- - Gall looked sharp today. That Decathlon CMA CGM pull on the last climb actually made sense tactically—force UAE to respond, then Felix goes. Pog’s counter was vintage: measure, then sting. Stage 9 is going to be carnage if he’s already this comfy.patriciaw28-08-2026
- - Slightly sceptical about the piece framing it as frustration. The quotes from Pogacar read like he was in control. Maybe we’re overreading the body language?tourdeforce928-08-2026
- - “We’re here to win the GC, not to mess around.” That line says it all. He saved UAE’s matches and still gained time. Efficient as ever.andrewf28-08-2026
- - Can someone explain why Decathlon was pacing for Gall if he couldn’t follow when Pog pushed on? Is that a normal tactic or did it backfire?gearguru3328-08-2026
- - Mas stirring the pot a bit there. Don’t think Pog was “angry,” more like opportunistic when the gap opened. That steady-pace surge is his trademark. GC contenders behind must be fuming.patriciaw28-08-2026
- - Loved how Pogacar downplayed the drama. Classic Tadej: calm, clinical, and straight to the point. If Decathlon want to light it up for Gall, he’ll just ride them off his wheel anyway.lindae28-08-2026
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