The 2026 edition of the UAE Tour concluded this Sunday with another bunch sprint in Abu Dhabi, where Matteo Milan couldn’t secure another top-10 finish. After a high-speed, high-tension finale, the young Italian crossed the line in eleventh place, while David Gaudu confirmed his eighteenth position overall in the general classification.
Just under 150 kilometres around Abu Dhabi were left to complete the eighth edition of the UAE Tour on Sunday. The seventh and final stage offered no major difficulties, but vigilance was once again required. “The day was expected to be quite tense, especially since the riders had heard that the peloton was growing tired of Jonathan Milan’s sprint wins,” explained Stéphane Goubert. “It was nervous at the start, and the guys were attentive to see how things would unfold.” Although the opening kilometers were indeed lively—particularly thanks to Remco Evenepoel—five riders eventually managed to break away after twenty kilometres. However, the peloton took no risks and kept them on a tight leash, never allowing the gap to exceed one minute thirty throughout the stage. The breakaway still showed strong resistance in the finale and was only reeled in two kilometers from the finish, setting the stage for the expected bunch sprint. “We had a fairly bold strategy,” Stéphane added. “We really wanted to wait until the very last moment because of the headwind. We had initially planned to move up on the right, but that didn’t open up. The guys changed the plan, managed to adapt, but they also had to spend more energy.”
“The teamwork is clicking” – Stéphane Goubert
It was only in the final two kilometres that the Groupama-FDJ United train managed to fight its way toward the front of the peloton. Then, in the closing hundreds of metres, Axel Huens fully committed himself to position Matteo Milan with 300 metres to go. The Italian was able to launch his final effort and ultimately finished in eleventh position. “The guys really did the job,” Stéphane commented. “I simply think Matteo spent a lot of mental and physical energy this week, there was also the crash, and that may have been what he lacked to make the top 10 today. We should remember that it was his first week-long WorldTour stage race, and with a new team. In any case, the teamwork is clicking, and that’s positive.” His brother Jonathan Milan claimed his third victory of the week, while Isaac del Toro won the overall classification. “As for David, the goal was to show steady progression, and that’s what he demonstrated yesterday with his top-10 finish,” Stéphane concluded. “Now we can turn our focus to the upcoming races.”
