Side by side, Isaac del Toro and Tadej Pogacar ruled the final uphill in Montjuïc to achieve a dominant 1-2 finish at the end of stage 2 of the Tour de France 2026. Their UAE Emirates-XRG teammates controlled the second half of the day, starting in Tarragona and heading to a demanding circuit in Barcelona. Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) attacked inside the last two kilometres but the Mexican youngster flew past him, with his Slovenian leader on his wheel. Pogacar looked back to control Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe), third on the day, and Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), who retains the Maillot Jaune after finishing fourth. Del Toro is the second Mexican stage winner in the history of the Tour after Raul Alcala (2 stages in 1989, 1990). It’s the first time UAE Emirates-XRG claim the first two places on the stage.
The action got going spectacularly on Saturday, and more fireworks are in sight in Montjuïc, once again at the center of final battles on stage 2 of the Tour de France 2026. After the opening team time trial that smiled on Jonas Vingegaard, the peloton face a 168.5 km explosive stage starting in Tarragona, now the southernmost stage town in the history of the event.
The route features 2,500 metres of elevation, mostly packed in the second half of the stage and especially on the final 12.2 km circuit. There, the riders will battle it out with three ascents of the Côte du château de Montjuïc (1.6km at 9.3%). The summit will be passed for the last time with just 2.5 km to go to the line.
First attacks
Baptiste Veistroffer (Lotto Intermarché) is the first attacker of the Tour, as soon as the flag drops. But he’s not the only rider willing to make the break. After a series of attacks and counter-attacks, Felix Engelhardt (Jayco AlUla) initiates the right move at km 4. He’s immediately followed by Frank van den Broek (Picnic PostNL). Alex Molenaar (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) bridges the gap a couple of kilometres later to make it a three-man breakaway.
Veistroffer also tries to join the front group but he gives up after some 15 kilometres of pursuit. As he’s reeled in, the gap reaches its highest mark for the day: 3’55’’ at km 27. Tom Pidcock’s Pinarello-Q36.5 take the reins of the bunch to control the gap early on.
First KOM points
Only trailing by 1’12’’ in the overall standings, Molenaar virtually takes the Maillot Jaune. He also dominates the intermediate sprint in Viladecans (km 85.6), where Biniam Girmay (NSN) shows his speed to get the better Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech). But Molenaar’s eyes are mostly set on the polka-dot jersey. And he conquers the first categorised summit of the Tour 2026, in Begues (km 94.2, cat. 2).
UAE Emirates-XRG up the ante. After the summit, only two riders remain at the front: Molenaar and Engelhardt. Their lead is down to 20 seconds. The gap momentarily gets back up to 45 seconds but they’re eventually reeled in with 32 kilometres to go, just before entering the final circuit. Meanwhile, Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) chases behind after a mechanical.
First head-to-head battles
Brandon McNulty (UAE Emirates-XRG) sets a brutal pace to thin out the peloton, down to some 30 riders as they enter the final two laps. Pogacar’s American teammate drives the bunch until the bottom of the final ascent of the day.
Tiesj Benoot (Decathlon CMA CGM) and Adam Yates (UAE Emirates-XRG) up the ante, but the main contenders stay together until the summit, despite a couple of late attacks by Tobias Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) and Richard Carapaz (EF Edcuation-EasyPost). Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) also tries his luck on the downhill, inside the last two kilometres.
Isaac del Toro (UAE Emirates-XRG) controls the Dane’s move… and flies past him as they tackle the final 700 metres, uphill. In his wake, Pogacar controls their rivals and celebrates alongside his teammate, only the second Mexican stage winner in the Tour after Raul Alcala. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) finishes third ahead of Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), who retains the Maillot Jaune with a lead of six seconds to Pogacar.
