Tom Pidcock survives the echelon madness to win the AlUla Tour!

Matteo Moschetti claimed victory in the final stage of the AlUla Tour. In a blisteringly fast race dominated by echelons, the Italian rider from Q36.5 Pro Cycling emerged as the strongest from a reduced group. His teammate Tom Pidcock’s overall lead was never in jeopardy, but the general classification still saw major shake-ups: Alan Hatherly and Rainer Kepplinger dropped out of the podium spots after missing the decisive echelon split.

Pidcock had strengthened his grip on the GC after securing his second stage win in stage four. The Brit finished solo once again, making his final victory all but certain heading into the last stage. The route to the AlUla Camel Cup Track was almost entirely flat, but as seen earlier in the race, the wind had the potential to wreak havoc and shake things up.

An early breakaway featuring Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Aivaras Mikutis (Tudor Pro Cycling) seemed poised to be the move of the day—but nothing was further from the truth. Right from the opening phase, echelons formed. Q36.5 Pro Cycling and Bahrain Victorious ramped up the pace, immediately splitting the peloton in two.

Pidcock and Tim Merlier made the front group, but Jayco AlUla was caught off guard. Alan Hatherly, who started the day in third place overall, found himself in the second group, along with Dylan Groenewegen. Picnic PostNL leaders Fabio Jakobsen and Frank van den Broek were also caught out. Van den Broek’s troubles worsened when he suffered a puncture, putting his eighth place in the GC at risk. Johannes Kulset, wearing the white jersey, also had the misfortune of a puncture at the worst possible moment.

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Second peloton makes a comeback

Around thirty riders had built a 35-second lead. However, Rainer Kepplinger, the number two in the classification behind Pidcock, suffered a puncture and had to rely on assistance from the neutral service car. Meanwhile, Soudal Quick-Step and Tudor Pro Cycling continued to push at the front, as their sprinters were well-positioned. But when Bahrain Victorious dropped out of the lead group, the chasing peloton suddenly had the advantage. After more than an hour and a half of relentless racing, they managed to bridge the gap midway through the stage.

This brought some temporary calm to the race. A small group of riders attacked again and was given some space, but the sprinters' teams kept them on a short leash. However, with 30 kilometers to go, the chaos returned as strong crosswinds shattered the peloton once again. Uno-X ramped up the pace, ensuring that Kepplinger was once again left behind. Alan Hatherly also got caught out for a second time. The speed was blistering, averaging close to 50 km/h.

The second group lost more and more time, making it clear they wouldn’t make it back. As a result, the general classification was turned upside down. The stage ultimately came down to a sprint, with Tim Merlier being delivered perfectly by his lead-out train, while Dylan Groenewegen’s weakened support suffered a setback—Elmar Reijnders punctured in the final stretch. In a surprising turn, Matteo Moschetti took the sprint victory, beating Juan Sebastián Molano and Groenewegen. Meanwhile, the second group’s significant time loss meant that Uno-X suddenly had riders in second, third, and fourth place in the general classification.

Stage 5 AlUla Tour results.

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