Isaac del Toro's attack fizzles during the final warm-up race before the Tour of Lombardy; INEOS capitalise

The 2026 Gran Piemonte took place on Thursday over 181 kilometers, from Asti to Bra. The traditional final warm-up race leading up to the Tour of Lombardy was dominated in the early hours by a nine-rider breakaway group, including Davide Ballerini, Valentin Ferron, Brieuc Rolland, Santiago Umba, and Manuele Tarozzi.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG had two favorites on the team —Isaac del Toro and world champion Brandon McNulty—and therefore took control of the peloton. Bahrain Victorious also pitched in from time to time. As a result, the pace was fast, both at the front and in the pack. Because Aless De Bock had to drop out of the leading group, we continued with eight leaders.

Their lead over the peloton was never really significant. As they approached the local circuit around La Morra, UAE began to push the pace harder and harder. Filippo Baroncini picked up the pace, and on the first pass through La Morra (7.1 kilometers at an average gradient of 3.6 percent), the early breakaway fell apart. Rolland, Ferron, and Umba held on at the front the longest, after which Ferron accelerated again.

A little over 30 kilometers from the finish, UAE had had enough, and it was Dutch top talent Daan Dijkman who ultimately caught the final breakaway riders. From there, all eyes were on the final climb to La Morra. Gijs Leemreize and Neilson Powless were the first to make a move here, after which Jhonatan Narváez further increased the pace for UAE.

Not long after, Del Toro made his expected move. The Mexican defending champion immediately made his mark, and only Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) was initially able to stay on his wheel. Behind the duo, the peloton completely broke up into several smaller groups, while Narváez and McNulty, riding for UAE, mainly focused on controlling the chasers.

Del Toro then pushed the pace again and even managed to pull away from Fisher-Black for a moment. The New Zealander managed to get back on his wheel during the descent, after which the duo had to hold on to a lead of just 18 seconds. They fell just short, as Del Toro and Fisher-Black were caught heading into the final kilometer. After a nasty crash in the peloton, Godon ultimately won the sprint.