Christophe Laporte makes winning start at Ruta Del Sol

Laporte made it a winning start to the 2026 season after brilliant work from himself and his Visma team as he timed his effort to perfection in a messy sprint situation in Pizarra.

Proceedings began with a group of six riders going clear of the pack, and the most notable figure was Victor Campenaerts (Visma | Lease a Bike). The group built a solid advantage across a lengthy category 1 climb, which would put Campenaerts into the mountain jersey at day's end. Behind, UAE Team Emirates-XRG took control of the peloton for the early portion of the stage.

With 70km to go, the race truly began to tear apart with sustained attacks from riders in the peloton, including a split that saw a number of GC contenders drift off the front.

Jan Christen (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Alex Zingle (Visma) were among the notable names in a group that was reeled in with 30km to go, setting the scene for the eventual bunch sprint.

Visma | Lease a Bike and Uno-X Mobility then came to the fore, aiming to tee up their riders, Christophe Laporte and Søren Wærenskjold, respectively. The run-in to Pizarra was an uneventful one at first glance, but a significant crash came 10km from the line and took down several riders.

Entering the last kilometre, Visma were still positioned well, and they set up Laporte in prime sprinting real estate. The sprint was a messy one, with riders sprawled across the road after Fred Wright (Pinarello Q36.5) struck out from distance.

After Wright faded, Laporte struck for home with a devastating sprint. There was a photo-finish for second, with Bastien Tronchon (Groupama-FDJ United) eventually getting the nod ahead of Ben Oliver (Modern Adventure)

Laporte moves into the leader's jersey, and stage 2 might offer another opportunity for the Frenchman with a flat run-in to the finish in Otura.