Van der Poel loses lead in Luxembourg: Vansevenant takes impressive double victory!

The stage was labeled the "queen stage," and it lived up to that title. With eight categorized climbs—including the Montée de Haemerich and Montée de Seitert, which had to be climbed three and two times respectively in the final circuit—the riders were in for a challenge. At 201.3 kilometers, it was also a long stage, with the start scheduled for 12:15 PM.

In the early phase of the race, only two riders formed the breakaway. Louis Vervaeke (Soudal-Quick Step) and Johannes Kulset (Uno-X Mobility) broke away and were the first to reach the intermediate sprint after 36 kilometers. One bonus second was still up for grabs in the peloton, and it was once again claimed by Marc Hirschi, as in earlier stages.

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On the first climb of the day, the Côte de Michelsbierg, Vervaeke and Kulset were still leading the way. This left only two points available for King of the Mountains, Pepijn Reinderink (Soudal-Quick Step). Reinderink didn’t score any points on the Côte de Beaufort, but his overall lead was already substantial. The breakaway duo's gap grew to over six minutes, making Kulset the virtual leader of the race for a brief period.

With only the Um Knupp climb remaining before the decisive final circuit, the race entered a status quo. Several teams in the peloton were aiming for the stage win, causing the gap to start shrinking. By the time they reached the last 65 kilometers, Vervaeke and Kulset’s lead had dropped to just over two minutes. This was the perfect time for a counterattack, as Bastien Tronchon (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team) and Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier (Lidl-Trek) tried to bridge the gap.

Tronchon posed a significant threat, sitting only sixteen seconds behind leader Van der Poel in the general classification. The Frenchman and his fellow escapee managed to catch up with the leading duo with 55 kilometers remaining, after Vervaeke had briefly attempted a solo move. Meanwhile, Visma | Lease a Bike and UAE Team Emirates took charge of the peloton’s pace, signaling the start of the final showdown.

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With 30 kilometers left, Felix Großschartner became the first UAE rider to attack. However, on the first ascent of the Haemerich climb, the peloton began to close in, and Christophe Laporte from Visma | Lease a Bike was forced to drop. Großschartner managed to bridge to the leading four, who had a half-minute gap over the chasing peloton as they passed the finish line for the first time, 28 kilometers from the end.

On the next climb, Andreas Kron (Lotto Dstny) and Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal Quick-Step) also attempted to bridge the gap, but an attack by Wilco Kelderman, followed by a response from Van der Poel, brought the group back together over the top and into the descent. Two riders managed to escape attention: Vansevenant and the previously invisible Davide Formolo from Movistar. They quickly gained a 45-second advantage, with Vansevenant adding a few more seconds at the second pass by the finish. Behind them, Bart Lemmen from Visma launched a chase, accompanied by Bob Jungels (RedBull) and Nicolas Prodhomme (AG2R).

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Two riders up front defended a 30-second lead over the chasing peloton, where UAE and EF Education-EasyPost were reeling in the attackers. The peloton pushed hard, but there was chaos on the steep climbs. Attacks rained down, but no one could make a decisive move. Up front, the breakaway riders didn’t sit still either—in fact, they only extended their lead. Vansevenant, in particular, was incredibly strong. He nearly dropped his breakaway companion Formolo, but the Italian managed to hang on. In the chasing group, Bob Jungels was dropped, while David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) caught up.

With seven kilometers to go, Hirschi made a big move. Van der Poel responded immediately, and the Swiss rider couldn’t shake him off his wheel. The world champion didn’t dare to counter, so the two continued together. But even the two top favorites couldn’t close the gap to the leaders. Four kilometers from the finish, Vansevenant surged away from Formolo. The Belgian from Soudal Quick-Step had already been the stronger of the two and confirmed it by powering away from his breakaway partner.

On the final hill, Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) caught up with Hirschi and Van der Poel. Hirschi attacked again, and this time, he managed to drop Van der Poel. The UAE rider bridged to the three chasers but couldn’t extend his lead. In fact, Van der Poel rejoined them. Up front, Vansevenant rode unchallenged to victory and claimed the leader’s jersey. Formolo managed to stay ahead of the chasing group, where Van der Poel narrowly beat Hirschi at the line.