Magnier imposes his law on the sprint in the Giro and Vingegaard shields the ‘pink jersey’

The French cyclist Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step) won this Thursday the eighteenth stage of the Giro d’Italia 2026, held between Fai della Paganella and Pieve di Soligo on a 171-kilometre route, after making use of his power in a very twisty final sprint, while the Dane Jonas Vingegaard (Team Visma|Lease a Bike) kept the ‘pink jersey’ after responding firsthand to the attacks in the final stretch.

The stage, with a leg-breaking profile and a prelude to the final high mountain, was initially starred by a breakaway of four runners who kept pace with the large group for a good part of the day. The Italians Mattia Bais and Andrea Mifsud (Polti VisitMalta), together with the British James Shaw (EF Education-EasyPost) and the Belgian Jonas Geens (Alpecin-Deceuninck) had advantages of more than two minutes.

However, the push in the peloton by the sprinters’ teams was reducing the income of the escapees. A very bumpy second half of the stage spurred the pace of the race, especially the spectacular fall suffered with 48 kilometers remaining by the Portuguese Afonso Eulálio (Bahrain-Victorious), wearer of the ‘white jersey’ for best youngster, who despite the blows was able to rejoin the march.

Precisely, the Portuguese attacked on the ramps of the feared Muro di Ca’ del Poggio, a demanding elevation located less than ten kilometers from the finish line. It was at this point where the race was blown up; Faced with the hardening of the pace and attacks, leader Vingegaard himself decided to take command in person to quell any tactical surprise from his direct rivals in the general classification, causing a severe selection in the group of favorites.

Once over the top and on a fast and winding descent towards Pieve di Soligo, the tension shifted to the sprinters. On a finish line that slanted slightly upwards, Paul Magnier demonstrated a marvelous pace of speed to win the stage with a powerful jump, beating his rivals in a highly placed finish.

After this day of nervous transition, the general classification does not experience significant variations in its upper part. Vingegaard will face the two decisive mountainous days of the weekend dressed in pink, which will begin this Friday with the nineteenth stage between Feltre and Alleghe (Piani di Pezzè).