Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) took a dramatic win amid a crash-marred final kilometre of stage 3 of the 2025 Volta ao Algarve in a mass sprint ahead of Alberto Dainese (Tudor Pro Cycling), who was later relegated for an incorrect manoeuvre, and Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty).
The final 5km was a heated battle between the sprint trains of the major favourites, with Intermarché-Wanty, Visma-Lease a Bike and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe most conspicuously controlling the pace.
Into the final kilometre, though, it was Arnaud De Lie (Lotto) who entered the field in the prime position, before Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) found his wheel to sit near the front of the peloton on the final approach to the finish line. The move perhaps came too early, as Dainese and Girmay shifted ahead of a fading Van Aert into the final straight.
Chaos erupted as a crash to the left of the peloton took down a dozen riders near the front of the sprint, including a number of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe riders but thankfully sparing the sprinters positioned at the front of the field.
Despite missing his supporting riders, though, Meeus follow a fortunate early sprint from Casper van Uden (Picnic-PostNL) before sweeping ahead of Girmay and Dainese in the final 100 metres.
Dainese crossed the line in second place, but he was later relegated, meaning Girmay placed second and Arnaud De Lie moved up to third.
"I was second already in my first race and I was really focused on the first stage here. Unfortunately, [it] didn't work out as we all know but today was another opportunity," Meeus said at the finish to Eurosport.
"I started good, I felt good all day and the team did an amazing job so I'm super happy to finish it off. It was actually quite a hectic day all day, the hilly part there was also some wind with 35k's to go so I was really nervous. Then after the bonus sprint we turned into headwind, I was surprisingly relaxed back then, and then the sprint preparations started.
"Like I said, my team did an amazing job. It was still a bit hectic in the final with the corners and the roundabouts but I managed to position myself well and finish it off."
The top three riders in the general classification remained the same, with Jan Christen and João Almeida holding a UAE Term Emirates-XRG 1-2 at the top of the order ahead of Ineos Grenadier's Laurens de Plus.
With fourth-placed Romain Bardet (Picnic-PostNL) crashing out of the race with 23km to go, António Morgado (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) shifted into his spot and all the others in the top 10 moved up one spot as well, with Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) going into 10th.
Van Aert, who won the same 183.5-kilometre stage to Tavira last year, was part of the bunch contesting the sprint, and finished seventh.
"I was super punchy in the final 3km," Wout van Aert said after the finish. "I was in a good position toward the roundabout at 800, but before the last corner, I lost too many positions for a good sprint."
How it unfolded
Warm if windy weather greeted the peloton at the start in the Portuguese border town of Vila Real de San Antonio. Last year's stage winner in Tavira, Van Aert logically found himself at the centre of the media attention at the sign-on.
A notably fast first hour, though, through the much more rugged opening half of the course did not prevent nine Portuguese riders and one Briton going clear, in what potentially constituted a serious challenge to the sprinters and WorldTour teams present.
Glasgow's Calum Johnston (Caja Rural), 9:14 back, nominally represented the most serious threat overall, but the allure of some time off the front and perhaps a breakaway win were the most obvious goals for the 10-man move, also containing Gonçalo Oliveira (Anicolor-Tien 21), Bruno Silva (Tavfer-Ovos Matinados-Mortagua), Joaquim Silva (Efapel), Ivo Pinheiro (Feirense-Beeceler), Carlos Miguel Salgueiro (APHotels & Resorts-Tavira-SC Farense) Noah Campos and André Ribeiro (GI Group Holding-Simoldes-UDO), Joao Oliveira (Credibom-LA Aluminios-Marcos Car) and César Fonte (Radio Popular-Paredes-Boavista).
By the foot of the first of the day's two classified climbs, the mid-stage category 3 Mercator, the 10 still held a solid three-minute gap. But the climb itself began to take its toll, with Joao Oliveira one of the first to be dropped, and the remainder of the breakaway shedding time as well.
Even before the last climb of the day, the Faz Fato, the entire front move was recaptured and the sprinters' teams, eager to prevent any late challenges, kept a strict eye on proceedings as the race moved towards the summit.
After German Nicolás Tivani (Aviludo-Louetano-Loule) darted ahead over the top to recapture the lead in the mountains classification from Foia winner Jan Christen (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), EF Education-EasyPost led the pack off the descent. Delegations from Visma-Lease a Bike, Soudal-QuickStep and Groupama-FDJ were notably present, too, in the front part of the peloton as it zipped along a broad 'A'-road back down from inland towards the very windy segment of Atlantic coastline.
The unmistakeable figure of Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) at the head of affairs added yet more speed to the peloton as it moved into the final 30 kilometres, speeded along by a brisk tailwind and well-surfaced roads. After rattling through the cobbled boulevards and past the famous lighthouse in the start town of Vila Real for a second time, a 90-degree turn brought the pack onto the long series of straightaways leading to the finish in Tavira.
Just as a crash brought down Bardet and Picnic-PostNL teammate Romain Combaud, Lidl-Trek put in their first concerted effort of the day on the front.
With the peloton together and a flat 20km ahead, it was for the sprinters' teams to orchestrate their lead-out trains, and all eyes were on Intermarché-Wanty, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Visma–Lease a Bike.
Results
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