Fancellu wins the opening stage of the Giro d'Abruzzo, Rondel and Ulissi at 2"

Alessandro Fancellu (MBH Bank CSB Telecom Fort) has won the first stage of the 2026 Giro d'Abruzzo, the opening stage of the race, after 3:51:24 of racing. The rider finished two seconds ahead of Mathys Rondel (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) and Diego Ulissi (XDS Astana Team), who crossed the line together. The race The opening stage was decided on the uphill finale towards Casalincontrada. With around 25 kilometres to go, a curious incident shook up the peloton: a spectator at the roadside kicked a bidon thrown away by a rider back towards the bunch, forcing several athletes to change their line. In that phase Peyton Burckel (EF Education-Aevolo) crashed after touching the wheel of the rider ahead of him; the rider then got back up and restarted without serious consequences. The race continued without further interruptions until the uphill sprint, where Fancellu proved to be the strongest. Stage results Alessandro Fancellu (MBH Bank CSB Telecom Fort) — 3:51:24 Mathys Rondel (Tudor Pro Cycling Team) +0:02 Diego Ulissi (XDS Astana Team) +0:02 Kévin Vauquelin (Netcompany Ineos) +0:02 Nicolò Garibbo (Team Ukyo) +0:02 General classification With his victory on the day, Fancellu is the first leader of the general classification of the 2026 Giro d'Abruzzo. Rondel follows him at 6 seconds, Ulissi at 8. The race, made up of four stages, continues tomorrow with a new stage.