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Follow us on Google The second stage of the Tour of the Algarve produced a gripping showdown on Thursday between Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM), Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) and João Almeida of UAE Team Emirates–XRG. Seixas took the win on the Alto da Fóia, but with Friday’s time trial still to come, both Ayuso and Almeida will feel they still have a big chance to turn the race their way.
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After the finish, Seixas suggested it felt like the Spaniard and the Portuguese rider weren’t immediately willing to work with him. Was it tactical, or simply a matter of not being able to do more?
“It was exciting, because it was less than a wheel,” Ayuso said afterwards. “I would have loved to win to thank my teammates for the work they did, but unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be.”
Ayuso was the first to go on the offensive in the finale, but he couldn’t shake Seixas. “I already knew beforehand he would be one of the rivals, and he proved it again,” the Lidl-Trek leader explained. “He was smarter than me at the end: I knew I had to take the second-to-last corner first, but he still managed to get the better of me.”
“When I launched my sprint, I was already a few bike lengths back,” Ayuso admitted. “But he deserved it. On Friday I’ve got a new chance in the time trial — and in the end it’s all about winning the race on the final day.”
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Almeida frustrated by McNulty crash
Almeida finished second on the Alto da Fóia last year on home roads, and this time had to settle for third. “It was a hard climb,” the Portuguese rider said. “It was a lot of stop-and-go, a bit irregular.”
He also felt UAE Team Emirates–XRG lost a key card when Brandon McNulty hit the deck. “It’s a shame Brandon McNulty crashed, because I think he would definitely have been with me and then we could have played things a bit more,” Almeida continued. “I tried, but I was missing something. In the end I’m happy with the result, and I’m looking forward to the time trial.”
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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
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- - Love that he’s honest about the pressure. Hopefully he can carry this form through the winter.lindae14-11-2026
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- - About time—Mason’s been knocking on the door for years. That Niel win could really open things up for him.cadencekingm14-11-2026
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- The article makes a good case for clubs and small teams doing the groundwork, rather than one big development pipeline. Thornley’s Vuelta time trials were seriously impressive too; missing a stage win by two seconds is brutal.davidm13-11-2026
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