Grégoire outsprints Healy in Luxembourg finale, while McNulty’s overall win breaks HTC’s record
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Follow us on GoogleRomain Grégoire won the fifth stage of the Tour of Luxembourg. In an exciting stage, everything was put on the line for the stage victory, but the overall victory of Brandon McNulty was never in danger. The American thus secured UAE Team Emirates-XRG's 86th victory of 2025, which goes down in the books as a new record number of victories. That record had been held by HTC Columbia since 2009.
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The fifth stage in Luxembourg covered 176.4 kilometers, from Mersch to the capital, Luxembourg. There were four categorized climbs along the way, but in fact, it was a mix of up and down all day in the always challenging stage race. Logically, many attackers still saw a chance to attempt an early breakaway.
A nice group of twelve eventually rode over the first climbs with a slight two-minute lead. Among others, Michael Gogl (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Tao Geoghegan Hart (Lidl-Trek), and Casper Pedersen (Soudal-Quick Step) were at the front. Luxembourg's Mats Wenzel (Equipo Kern Pharma) was the best-ranked rider, 3.36 minutes behind McNulty. So UAE had to control the race.
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Tao Geoghegan Hart
Race starts late in peloton and breakaway
After an exciting opening phase and despite a nice course, there was room for an extended status quo. Nils Politt controlled the front of the peloton, knowing that this would secure McNulty's leading position. At the front, the only excitement came when the riders battled for the mountain points. Tudor, Groupama-FDJ, and Wagner Bazin WB eventually took control.
This caused an acceleration, reducing the twelve leaders' lead to less than a minute. With 35 kilometers to go, that was a pretty hopeless mission, so the breakaway group also had to accelerate. Thibault Guernalec (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) made the move, reducing the group from twelve to nine riders.
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Group of favorites emerges, Wenzel solo
Wenzel countered the attacks of the others and then decided to go solo. The brave home rider saw his lead increase to over a minute, but the peloton had also started to move. Ben Healy (EF) and Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) had gone on the attack, forcing McNulty to chase. Slowly, everything came together.
Healy and Grégoire were not immediately a threat to McNulty, but with 20 kilometers to go, the two caught up with Wenzel. Marc Hirschi wanted to catch up, while the American waited for his UAE teammates. By the time they had caught up with McNulty, Grégoire, Healy, and Wenzel had already gained 40 seconds. Hirschi remained in between.
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Healy versus Grégoire in final
The brave home rider Wenzel fell behind when he missed a turn. The other two leaders continued to ride further and further away from the yellow jersey, although UAE still managed to maintain control in the group of favorites. They also received help from Lidl-Trek, as there were fears for Skjelmose's podium place. This kept the gap roughly the same, but the stage victory went to the men at the front.
The explosive Grégoire knew that Healy had to try something to get away from him. The attack was coming, and it came in the last 2 kilometers. It wasn't really an acceleration, but the high pace wasn't enough to shake off his rival. In fact, he broke away himself and managed to stay just ahead of Healy. That's how he clinched his second victory of the week. McNulty rode safely behind him to fourth place and the overall victory.
Results stage 5 Tour of Luxembourg 2025
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
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Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
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- Roglič at TotalEnergies would be a fascinating move, but Heulot sounds pretty clear that it isn’t happening. His experience could be a massive boost for the younger riders, though.jennifer1911-11-2026
- Eight riders told to go for stages, and nobody gets one—hard to know what the plan was there. It’ll be interesting to see whether they pick a clear leader next time.bikebuffj10-11-2026
- Was Bernal’s 20th place really their best GC result? I thought he might have finished higher. Either way, it sounds like a rough Tour for the whole team.gearguru3310-11-2026
- Five days in breaks with no stage win is a painful stat. The team had chances, but they need to turn those opportunities into results.julien10-11-2026
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