Merlier signs the hat-trick in the Tour in another electric day and with a massive fall

The Belgian cyclist Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) has won this Thursday the twelfth stage of the Tour de France 2026, held between the Circuit Nevers Magny-Cours and Chalon-sur-Saône over 179.1 kilometers, by clearly winning a massive sprint after a day that, without reaching the speed record of the previous stage, was once again held at a very high pace in its final stretch, with endless attacks and a spectacular collective fall a few meters from the goal that conditioned the outcome.

Merlier, who had already raised his arms twice in this edition, completed his particular hat-trick by winning with authority ahead of Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech). The Belgian found the perfect place among the survivors of a chaotic arrival and confirmed his status as the most reliable sprinter of this Tour, while Philipsen was once again left without a prize despite the excellent previous work of Mathieu van der Poel.

When it seemed that the collective effort would lead to a clean sprint, the accumulated tension ended up exploding. Already inside the safety zone and riding at around 70 kilometers per hour, Fernando Gaviria (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) touched wheels with a Soudal Quick-Step rider, did the classic ‘sharpener’ and triggered a spectacular multiple fall in which the cyclists fell in a chain. The pileup left numerous sprinters out of the fight, while the majority of the general classification favorites managed to save the incident.

Among the runners who avoided the fall, Merlier once again demonstrated composure and power to successfully complete the sprint. Kooij had to settle for second place and Philipsen, despite Van der Poel’s impeccable launch, was once again left without breaking his record of victories in this edition of the French round.

The stage began with a more contained pace than that of the eleventh day, the fastest in the history of the Tour, but the script changed radically in the final kilometers. The approach to the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy, the third and last scoring difficulty of the day, unleashed hostilities and turned the race into a continuous exchange of attacks, accelerations and counterattacks that prevented any moment of respite.

In that decisive phase, numerous protagonists appeared. Michael Valgren, Quinn Simmons and several Lidl-Trek runners shook up the race again and again, trying to break the discipline of the peloton both on the ascent and descent of the hill. Precisely the German team was the one that most insisted on selecting the group with several of its riders, while the UAE Team Emirates-XRG of leader Tadej Pogacar always remained attentive at the front to avoid any surprise that could compromise the yellow jersey.

The attacks continued without rest. There were offensives by isolated corridors and also by small groups, some with just a few hundred meters of life and others capable of opening more dangerous gaps. A breakaway of fourteen riders even consolidated with names such as Mathias Vacek, Filippo Ganna, Daan Hoole, Robert Stannard, Fred Wright, Alex Kirsch, Davide Ballerini and Mauro Schmid, although the intense work of the peloton ended up neutralizing all attempts before the final outcome.

The day did not cause any changes in the general classification, which continues to be headed with authority by Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), after a quiet day for the men called to compete for the yellow jersey.

This Friday the Tour will definitively abandon the favorable days for sprinters with the thirteenth stage, 205.8 kilometers between Dole and Belfort, at the entrance to Les Vosges. The route will include the Col des Croix and, above all, the first pass through the historic Ballon d’Alsace, a first-class pass of 9.1 kilometers at 6.9 percent whose summit, located about 35 kilometers from the finish, could become the ideal setting for a quality getaway or to see movements among the contenders for the general classification.