Remco Evenepoel signs one of the most important victories of his career and conquers the fifteenth stage of the 2026 Tour de France, with finish at Plateau de Solaison, at the end of a day that seemed destined to be remembered above all for Jonas Vingegaard's withdrawal. Instead, the race delivered a spectacular finale, with the Belgian Olympic champion able to beat Tadej Pogacar and Isaac Del Toro in a sprint, securing his first stage victory in a road race, and especially in high mountains, at the Grande Boucle.

A victory of enormous significance, because it comes against the strongest rider in the world and allows the Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe leader to climb to second place in the general classification. With Vingegaard's withdrawal, Evenepoel is now Pogacar's main challenger, five minutes behind, but with 58 seconds advantage over Isaac Del Toro, the new third in the standings.

The day took a decisive turn just over 21 kilometers from the finish, when Jonas Vingegaard was involved in a crash that forced him to retire. A devastating blow for Visma-Lease a Bike and for the entire Tour, which lost the man destined to contest the yellow jersey with Pogacar all the way to Paris.

The situation thus changed immediately, and UAE Team Emirates-XRG modified its strategy. The objective became to give the stage victory to Isaac Del Toro, with Pogacar ready to put himself at the service of the young Mexican.

In the final, Pogacar, Del Toro and Evenepoel remained in command. The Slovenian imposed a grueling pace to favor his teammate, but the Belgian never lost contact. In the final meters, when Del Toro launched his attack, Evenepoel perfectly exploited the slipstream, overtaking both and securing a victory of extraordinary prestige.

«It's incredible. I'm literally trembling with emotion. It was an infernal day, with a rather difficult start. Actually, I didn't have good feelings at the beginning, but I improved more and more throughout the day, so yes, I'm really happy».

For Evenepoel, this is not just any victory. It's proof that he is now competitive on the great mountains against the dominator of world cycling.

«You have to understand that I'm racing with the best of all time, the greatest rider ever. He rode an infernal climb to try to win the stage with Isaac. For me, it's a big step forward to be able to follow that pace, because it was an insane pace».

In recent years, the Belgian has often been criticized for his difficulties on the hardest climbs. This success represents an answer on the road. «I always receive so much criticism about the fact that I can't survive demanding climbs. This victory is just for myself and for everyone around me. It means so much».

Evenepoel, however, ruled out that the final overtake on Del Toro was some sort of personal revenge. «I didn't expect more attacks from Isaac, but in the final part he went very strong. Then he attacked again near the finish, but for me it was the perfect way to prepare for the sprint. I tried to maintain my momentum all the way to the line and winning this beautiful stage is incredible».

The success takes on even greater meaning when thinking about the sacrifices made to arrive competitive on the great mountains. «I made efforts on this climb today perhaps twenty times stronger than when I was here training at Campic Comble. It's incredible to get this victory and go to the rest day with this feeling».

While celebrating one of the most important triumphs of his career, Evenepoel doesn't forget the real objective of the Tour. «I'm here for the general classification and today's victory is an excellent move in that respect as well».

Before celebrating his own success, the Belgian wanted to express his thoughts about the day's great loser. «Jonas's withdrawal was really bad news for him, for his team and also for the race. It's something you would never wish on anyone». Then, inevitably, it was necessary to refocus on the race.

«After you have to regain concentration and try to give your best. Winning the stage, arriving with Tadej and Isaac and creating a significant gap over the others was incredible. Now we have a good rest day and then a beautiful day on Tuesday, when I'll try to win another stage. I found my best legs during this Tour and I hope to keep them in the final week».

Evenepoel has already won the Worlds, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the Vuelta de España and two Olympic golds. Yet this victory holds a special place.

«It's really difficult to win a race and I'm one of the lucky ones who still manages to win quite a few. But at the Tour, on such demanding mountains, it's really difficult to beat riders like Tadej and Jonas, especially Tadej. Every time an opportunity presents itself, you have to seize it. This is my first real mountain stage won in the group of general classification riders. It shows that I've made a step forward. Now I hope to maintain this level in the final week, because the Tour isn't over yet. But this is really a beautiful victory».

With the Tour entering its decisive week, Pogacar remains the great favorite for the yellow jersey. Behind him, however, the hierarchy has changed. Evenepoel has inherited Vingegaard's legacy as the main rival to the Slovenian and, above all, has finally proven he can win on the great mountains, right against the champion who has dominated cycling for years.