Antonio Morgado (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) couldn't have given himself a better gift on his 22nd birthday, triumphing in the first race of the Challenge Mallorca, the Calvià Trophy, by beating Hector Alvarez (Spain) in a sprint, with whom he had previously caught and dropped a trio of attackers.

Third, 38 seconds behind the duo that contested the victory, was the sole survivor of the morning breakaway, Ådne Holter (Uno-X Mobility), who managed to beat Adrien Boichis (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) in a two-man sprint for the podium. Andre Vendrame (Jayco-AlUla) was further back, finishing sixth in Palmanova and the only Italian to conclude the race in the top ten.

THE RACE

After a rather calm start, Andrea Pietrobon (Polti-VisitMalta), Ådne Holter (Uno-X Mobility), Jonathan Caicedo (Petrolike), and Eivind Fougner (Unibet Rose Rockets) broke away from the group. The four reached the slopes of Coll de Sóller together, with just over a minute's lead, after which the cards were reshuffled: Pietrobon went solo, while Holter was caught by Adrien Boichis (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Georg Steinhauser (EF Education-EasyPost), and Leander Van Hautegem (Team Flanders-Baloise). Under a relentless rain, the four managed to catch the Italian, who, however, lost contact along with the Belgian on the road leading to the Valdemossa climb.

A leading trio remained, pursued at about a minute and a half by a group taking turns being pulled by Jayco-AlUla and Lotto-Intermarchè riders. The attackers' good pace meant their advantage was 1'50" at the start of the Coll de sa Coma climb, where, behind them, Jayco broke the deadlock with an action that, however, counterintuitively favored the solo breakaway of Antonio Morgado (UAE Team Emirates-XRG). The Portuguese launched himself alone in pursuit of the leading trio, which, proceeding in good agreement, still maintained a 1'40" lead over the Portuguese rider less than 30 kilometers from the finish and easily overcame the day's final GPM climb, the Coll de sa Gramola.

A great descent from this climb, however, allowed Morgado, who in the meantime had been joined by an even more brilliant and courageous Hector Alvarez (Spain), to reduce most of his disadvantage and spot the breakaway group twenty kilometers from the finish line. The definitive catch happened on the Coll de n'Esteva, but the five remained together for just a few hundred meters before Alvarez immediately attacked, taking Morgado with him and decisively dropping the other adventure companions.

The two, with the main group now more than two minutes behind, collaborated in the last very fast ten kilometers, further distancing the first chasers (Holter and Boichis) and thus securing the possibility of contesting the victory in a head-to-head that, at the Palmanova finish line, ultimately resolved in Morgado's favor.

Alvarez, despite his great generosity, couldn't match the quick burst of the Caldas de Rainha native and was forced to settle for second place behind him, a placement that, combined with his 9th place at the Gran Premio Castellón, still gives him an important confirmation of his good form.

Along with him and Morgado (his seventh pro victory, the first since last year's Portuguese time trial championship), Holter (his best result in a one-day race since winning the GP Sundvolden 2023) and Andrea Vendrame can also smile. After his 5th place at the Classica Camp de Morvedre and 6th at Gran Premio Castellón, Vendrame remains one of the most in-form riders at Jayco-AlUla in this early 2026, finishing in the top eight in his third seasonal commitment.

FINISH ORDER

1. Antonio Morgado (POR/UAE Team Emirates-XRG) - 3:51:06

2. Héctor Álvarez (SPA/Spain) - s.t.

3. Adne Holter (NOR/Uno-X Mobility) at 0:40

4. Adrien Boichis (FRA/Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe) at 0:42

5. Georg Steinhauser (GER/EF Education-EasyPost) at 1:15

6. Anthony Turgis (FRA/TotalEnergies) at 2:03

7. Andrea Vendrame (ITA/Jayco-AlUla) at 2:03

8. Nils Politt (GER/UAE Team Emirates-XRG) at 2:03

9. Rune Herregodts (BEL/UAE Team Emirates-XRG) at 2:21

10. Henri Vandenabeele (BEL/Team Flanders-Baloise) at 2:33