Vine seals victory in fine fashion at Coppi e Bartali, Ayuso second in Catalunya

Jay Vine claimed victory on stage 3 of the Coppi e Bartali for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, arriving to the line solo on the 142km trek from Riccione to Cesena.

Vine attacked with Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal-Quick Step) just before the final climb of Diolaguardia with -25km to go, with the pair building up a slender lead of no more than 20 seconds.

The Australian rider would go clear solo over the top of the climb and maintain a small advantage on the wet descent. As the group chased behind, Vine opened the afterburners to put his time-trial ability to the test with the Australian putting in a gutsy performance to take his first win of the 2025 campaign.

Vine: “It’s really amazing to get a win on the board. It’s my first win in Italy which is pretty special and the first since my son was born so it’s really motivating having him and my wife cheering at home.

“The team is on a great wave at the moment and I’m delighted to add to it and get my name on that list of victories, it’s really special.”

The racing continues tomorrow in Italy with a hilly stage 4 that starts and finishes in Brisighella (150.4km).

Coppi e Bartali stage 3 results

1. Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) 3:40:58

2. Magnus Sheffield (Ineos Grenadiers) +26″

3. Simone Velasco (XDS Astana Team) s.t

Coppi e Bartali general classification after stage 3

1. Magnus Sheffield (Ineos Grenadiers) 11:47:13

2. Ben Tulett (Visma-Lease a Bike) +3″

3. Simone Velasco (XDS Astana Team) +4″

7. Alessandro Covi (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +8″

Over in Catalunya, only a photo finish could seperate Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) and UAE Team Emirates-XRG‘s Juan Ayuso once again. This time around, it was Ayuso who was forced to settle for second place on the day, ceding the leader’s jersey to the Slovenian but heading into Friday’s stage tied on time for the race lead.

With another impressive performance to add to a string of recent highlights, Ayuso ended stage 4 of the Volta a Catalunya in the young rider’s jersey. In a repeat of Wednesday’s stage to La Molina, Thursday’s summit finish atop the Montserrat Monastery produced a barnstorming battle between the race’s two strongest climbers. Although it was Roglič who ultimately triumphed, it was Ayuso who had made the biggest attack of the stage in the final kilometres.

Ayuso’s attack came with 2.6km to ride, after his UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammates had performed their duties to the mark.

At first, it was Julius Johansen and Domen Novak who worked tirelessly to keep the day’s breakaway in check, before Pavel Sivakov guided his team to the foot of the final climb, Pablo Torres ramped up the pace and Marc Soler buried himself to perhaps make himself the day’s unofficial MVP. Once the Spaniard had spent his last bullet, Adam Yates went to task at the front and all that was left was for Ayuso to make his premeditated attack.

Just as the team had discussed in the morning, the 22-year-old launched a searing acceleration in a bid to drop his rivals. Beginning the stage in the race lead, Ayuso was a man on a mission. With one final look round to Mikel Landa (Soudal Quick-Step), Ayuso ridded himself of all but one rival – the man he would bring to the line to decide the day’s winner in a sprint.

As they crested the final bend, Ayuso and Roglič went head-to-head in another exciting finish, and their respective bonus seconds taken throughout the course of the race ensure that the pair will begin stage 5 level on time. A sprint finish should be expected on Friday, before the pair will clash once again to decide the general classification over the weekend.

Volta a Catalunya stage 4 results

1. Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) 4:24:08

2. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

3. Enric Mas (Movistar) +3″

Volta a Catalunya general classification after stage 4

1. Primož Roglič (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) 18:54:50

2. Juan Ayuso (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) s.t

3. Enric Mas (Movistar) +20″