Tour Down Under loses its last bit of suspense after another crash, Visma | Lease a Bike misses next chance
CyclingSaturday, 24 January 2026 at 09:49
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Follow us on GoogleThe Tour Down Under suffered a heavy blow to the suspense about the overall win in the Australian stage race in Stage 4. In a heat-shortened stage, Jhonatan Narváez, second in the general classification, crashed hard and was forced to abandon. His teammate Jay Vine now looks set for overall victory, with Ethan Vernon taking the stage win.
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Stage 4 in Australia was already re-shaped on day five before it really began. With expected temperatures well above 40 °C, the organisers were forced to remove the traditional route over Willunga Hill, and there was even doubt about whether the stage would start at all amid the risk of wildfires. A challenging 176 km stage was thus reduced to 130.8 km with few obstacles.
A day for the sprinters, then: they’d already had opportunities on Stages 2 and 4, and now got another go. Even though the final 600 m in the new finish town of Willunga featured a rise of around 3–4 %, timing was crucial — and being in the right place at all. Visma | Lease a Bike failed in that respect.
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Visma | Lease a Bike went Saturday for Matthew Brennan
UAE Emirates-XRG sees Narváez abandon the race
For the overall contenders it was mainly about staying upright. Leader Jay Vine managed that mission, but Narváez did not finish. The Ecuadorian was six seconds behind his teammate in the general classification, which meant the two were still set for a battle in the final two days. Narváez won last year’s Tour Down Under, so Vine appeared the most likely challenger.
In a stage defined early on by a three-man break (including strong riders Matthew Greenwood, Luke Plapp and Rémi Cavagna), it soon became the end of the line for Narváez. The punchy UAE Emirates-XRG rider was suddenly alone on the asphalt, and it was immediately clear something was very wrong. Reports quickly came in that he had abandoned. He was found to have fractures from the crash.
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Van Poppel also fails to finish, Vernon sprints to victory
The three early leaders were given a maximum of just under four minutes’ gap, but there were plenty of sprint trains in control behind. After news that UAE domestique Vegard Stake Laengen and Dutch champion Danny van Poppel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) had also abandoned, it was the wind that made the peloton start to chase.
Once calm returned, it was mainly Visma | Lease a Bike that held control, and with 24 km to go the early escapees were already caught. This led to a long lead-out by the sprint trains — with NSN ultimately looking the strongest. Vernon crossed the line fastest in an uphill sprint, ahead of Tobias Lund Andresen and Laurence Pithie. Visma | Lease a Bike had no answer, with Brennan finishing sixteenth.
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
- - Félicitations in advance si ça se concrétise. Line-up looks très britannique mais con ambición grande. Tour 2027 en Edimbourg sería épico si les invitan.gearguru3310-09-2026
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- - Bit cautious here. Hayter’s had stop-start seasons with crashes/illness and I still don’t know if he’s a GC week-long guy or a TT/sprint hybrid. Curious whether they build around him or Pidcock first.pedalpowe2910-09-2026
- - Hayter’s engine + Q5’s growing train could smash team TTs and medium sprint stages. Mauro Schmid + Bittner coming too? That’s a nasty lead-out combo if they gel.cyclechamp4510-09-2026
- - Can someone explain how ProTeams get Tour invites? If Q5 aren’t automatic, what results do they need—UCI points, one-day wins, or stage race podiums? Confused how that process works.samanthak10-09-2026
- - Love the Edinburgh Grand Départ angle. If ASO is on the fence, a British TT champ in form plus Pidcock makes that wildcard case much stronger. Q5 look less like a ProTeam and more like a budding GC/ Classics hybrid.jennifer1910-09-2026
- - Not sure the piece nails the contract timing. Says “for 2027” but what about 2025–26? Is he staying at Soudal through 2026 even after being told no extension? Sounds a bit contradictory tbh.robert6510-09-2026
- - Huge if true. Hayter to Q5 alongside Pidcock, Wright and Gloag gives them a legit British core. With Glasenberg’s backing they’re clearly aiming at TdF wildcardHope he nails today’s TT after missing the Bilbao opener by09s—that’s been haunting him all Vuelta.tourdeforce910-09-2026
- - Love the honesty about hesitating because of Remco’s messages. Ego flattered but head ruled. That’s grown-up stuff. Vamos Tim, forza UAE!andrewf10-09-2026
- - “Brand team” line threw me. Does he mean title sponsor obligations? Either way, UAE pays the wages—totally get it. Bon courage Tim, allez!tourdeforce910-09-2026
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