Richard Carapaz won stage 20 of the 2026 Tour de France on Alpe d’Huez, taking his second stage victory in three days after Sepp Kuss crashed twice in the final 7 kilometres while leading the race.
The EF Education-EasyPost rider had already all but sealed the mountains classification over the Col du Galibier, then chased Kuss across the Col de Sarenne before inheriting the lead after the American’s second fall. Carapaz rode clear through the final kilometres and finished alone to take his third career Tour stage win and 10th Grand Tour stage victory.
Remco Evenepoel finished second at 26 seconds after attacking late from the GC group, with Kuss third at 31 seconds after remounting from his crash. Tadej Pogačar and Isaac del Toro came in together at 1:05, with Pogačar protecting yellow and helping Del Toro secure the white jersey and a podium place before Paris.
The final mountain stage had everything
Stage 20 was the final mountain stage of the 2026 Tour, and arguably the hardest day of the race on paper. The route packed 5,600 metres of climbing into 170.9 kilometres from Le Bourg d’Oisans to Alpe d’Huez, with the Col de la Croix de Fer, Col du Télégraphe, Col du Galibier, Col de Sarenne and a final return to Alpe d’Huez all on the menu.
It was also the second consecutive finish on Alpe d’Huez, but this was not a repeat of stage 19. Instead of the classic 21 hairpins from Le Bourg d’Oisans, the race approached the summit via the Col de Sarenne, giving the final kilometres a very different character.
Pogačar began the day with the Tour effectively under control, but there were still several races inside the race. Carapaz had taken the polka-dot jersey by a single point the previous day. Del Toro had to defend third overall and the white jersey from Paul Seixas. Mads Pedersen was trying to make the green jersey almost mathematically safe before Paris.
Then there was the stage itself. Team Visma | Lease a Bike had lost Jonas Vingegaard earlier in the Tour and had turned fully towards breakaway victories. Kuss was their clearest climbing card, and stage 20 looked like the day he had been waiting for.
Ayuso helps create the early break
The race exploded on the Col de la Croix de Fer. Juan Ayuso, having lost his place in the top five overall on stage 19, was immediately active and helped force the split that created the day’s key breakaway.
A strong group formed with Carapaz, Kuss, Ayuso, Ben Healy, Mattia Cattaneo, Matthew Riccitello, Thymen Arensman, Tobias Foss, Davide Piganzoli, Jai Hindley, Valentin Paret-Peintre, Tobias Halland Johannessen, Clément Braz Afonso and several Team Visma | Lease a Bike riders, including Bruno Armirail and Matteo Jorgenson.
Visma’s intention was clear. Armirail was put to work early, Jorgenson later emptied himself, and Kuss was protected for the decisive climbs. With Vingegaard no longer in the race, this was not about controlling GC. It was about making the breakaway stick and giving Kuss a shot at the stage.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG controlled behind with Adam Yates, Felix Großschartner and Pogačar around Del Toro, but they were not chasing the break at full commitment. The stage had too much climbing left for anyone to panic early.
Carapaz strikes first for polka dots
Carapaz made his intentions clear before the summit of the Croix de Fer. Wearing the polka-dot jersey, he attacked 3.7 kilometres from the top and rode clear to take the maximum 20 points.
Paret-Peintre, his closest rival in the mountains classification, chased behind and took second for 15 points, but the balance was already turning towards Carapaz. Piganzoli was third, Ayuso fourth, Riccitello fifth and Kuss sixth.
That move mattered for more than the jersey. It showed that Carapaz still had the legs to shape the race after his win at Orcières-Merlette and his near miss behind Pogačar on the first Alpe d’Huez stage.
Behind, Pedersen made his own remarkable move. The green jersey attacked from the yellow jersey group on the Croix de Fer, not for the stage, but to reach the intermediate sprint at Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne. It was a brutal way to chase points, but entirely in keeping with how he has ridden this Tour.
Pedersen all but secures green
After the descent from the Croix de Fer, Pedersen made it across to the breakaway group and took the intermediate sprint uncontested. The Lidl-Trek rider claimed 25 points, with Tobias Halland Johannessen second and Jorgenson third.
That moved Pedersen 82 points clear of Jasper Philipsen, with only 95 points left available across the rest of the Tour. Given the terrain still to come on stage 20, and the final stage in Paris as the only remaining major points opportunity, it all but sealed the green jersey.
It was a fitting way for Pedersen to do it. His points campaign has not been built only on bunch sprint placings. It has been built on aggression, resilience and repeated raids on intermediate sprints across terrain that his rivals could not handle.
Once the sprint was done, the race shifted back to the climbers. Pedersen had completed his day’s work. For Carapaz, Kuss, Ayuso, Hindley and the rest of the climbers, the hardest part was still ahead.
Photo Credit: A.S.O./Thomas MaheuxTélégraphe ends Paret-Peintre’s challenge
The Col du Télégraphe began to strip the breakaway down. Armirail drove the front for Team Visma | Lease a Bike, while Piganzoli and Foss later took over. Pedersen was distanced, Jorgenson sat up after his work, and Paret-Peintre began to struggle.
Carapaz took another 10 KOM points at the summit, this time after Healy had helped drive the break for EF. Paret-Peintre did not score, and the mountains classification was beginning to slip away from the Frenchman.
By the top of the Télégraphe, Carapaz had 121 points, with Paret-Peintre on 99 and Pogačar on 90. With the Galibier still to come, Carapaz had put himself in position to effectively settle the polka-dot jersey before the final climb to Alpe d’Huez.
The front group was also becoming more selective. The stage was moving away from riders who had simply made the early break and towards the strongest climbers left in the race.
Van Wilder abandons after crash
The descent and valley roads brought more attrition. Ilan Van Wilder abandoned after a crash, ending a strong Tour that had kept him close to the top 10 overall. Pascal Ackermann had also left the race earlier, reducing the peloton further before the final day in Paris.
There were scares elsewhere too. Tiesj Benoot crashed on the descent from the Croix de Fer but got back up and continued. On a day this hard, every descent and every transition carried risk, especially with tired riders trying to hold position after repeated climbs.
At the front, the breakaway’s advantage grew towards 4 minutes and then beyond. Bahrain Victorious briefly took up pace-setting behind because Ayuso’s move threatened Lenny Martinez’s fifth place overall, but the break still had a strong chance of contesting the stage.
Then the race reached the Galibier.
Carapaz seals the polka-dot jersey on the Galibier
The Col du Galibier was the highest point of the 2026 Tour and the day’s Souvenir Henri Desgrange. It was also where Carapaz effectively won the mountains classification.
He attacked 5 kilometres from the summit, blowing the breakaway apart. Kuss, Hindley and Riccitello were the strongest behind, while Ayuso tried to limit the damage. Healy, who had done a huge amount of work for EF, finally ran out of road at the front.
Kuss, Hindley and Riccitello managed to come back to Carapaz with around 3 kilometres to the summit, but Carapaz still took the top of the Galibier first. He collected 20 more KOM points, ahead of Kuss, Hindley, Riccitello, Ayuso, Arensman, Piganzoli and Tobias Halland Johannessen.
That put Carapaz out of reach in the mountains classification, provided he finished the Tour. It was a powerful moment. He had taken points across the final Alpine block, beaten Paret-Peintre in the decisive battle, and now stood on the highest summit of the race wearing the jersey he was about to secure.
Pogačar turns domestique for Del Toro
Behind the break, the yellow jersey group was being shaped by UAE’s priorities. Pogačar did not ride as a leader chasing another stage win. He rode as a teammate.
On the Galibier, he set the tempo himself with Del Toro on his wheel. Evenepoel, Seixas and Martinez were able to follow at first, but Pogačar’s pace thinned the group sharply. When Del Toro appeared to struggle, Pogačar eased slightly, allowing him to stay attached.
That told the story of UAE’s day. Pogačar’s yellow jersey was safe. The more delicate task was protecting Del Toro’s third place overall and white jersey from Seixas.
By the summit, Pogačar had Del Toro, Evenepoel, Seixas and Martinez close, with Skjelmose and others chasing. The stage win was still up the road, but UAE were riding for the podium structure behind Pogačar rather than for another personal victory.
It was a different image from stage 19. This time, Pogačar was not chasing the break for glory. He was managing the race for his teammate.
Kuss attacks on the Sarenne
After the Galibier descent, the front of the race settled into a smaller winning group: Carapaz, Kuss, Hindley and Ayuso, with Riccitello briefly chasing behind before losing contact. They reached the foot of the Col de Sarenne with a lead of around 3 and a half minutes over the Pogačar-led favourites.
The Sarenne was the final categorised climb of the day: 12.8 kilometres at 7.3 per cent. It had appeared in the Tour before from the opposite direction, but this approach towards Alpe d’Huez gave the stage an isolated, tense finale.
Kuss attacked first with around 9 kilometres to the summit, distancing Hindley and Carapaz. For a while, it looked like the American had made the winning move. He stretched the gap, rode smoothly and seemed to be heading towards a second Tour stage win of his career.
Carapaz, however, refused to let him go. He gradually reduced the gap, while Hindley faded and Ayuso dropped back towards the GC fight.
Seixas cracks as Del Toro attacks
Behind, Decathlon CMA CGM made their move for Seixas. Nicolas Prodhomme took over in the yellow jersey group, with Matthew Riccitello dropping back to help. The idea was clear: put Del Toro under pressure before the summit of the Sarenne and try to crack the white jersey holder.
For a short period, Seixas was on the front himself, followed by Del Toro, Evenepoel, Pogačar, Martinez and Skjelmose. Then Del Toro flipped the race around.
The Mexican accelerated, and Seixas was distanced. Evenepoel and Pogačar followed Del Toro, while Martinez initially struggled before returning. It was a major moment in the white jersey fight. Instead of Seixas taking time, Del Toro had put the French rider into difficulty.
Pogačar continued to ride according to Del Toro’s needs. He was not trying to distance everyone for his own sake. He was keeping the white jersey group under control and making sure Del Toro did not overextend after his acceleration.
At the summit of the Sarenne, Kuss led over first, taking 20 points, with Carapaz second and Hindley third. The Pogačar group came over just over 2 minutes behind, while Seixas was further back with Skjelmose and Ayuso.
Kuss crashes twice
The descent and rolling final approach should have been Kuss’s chance to finish the job. He had crested the Sarenne ahead of Carapaz, and even as the Ecuadorian closed in, the stage was still firmly within reach.
Then everything changed. Kuss crashed with around 7 kilometres remaining, but got back up quickly and briefly kept the lead. Carapaz was still behind, close enough to threaten but not yet past.
A second crash with around 6 kilometres to go ended Kuss’s winning chance. This time Carapaz went past while the Visma rider was on the ground. Kuss remounted again, but the momentum had gone. Carapaz was now alone at the front.
It was a brutal reversal. Kuss had been named the most combative rider of the day and had looked set to end the USA’s wait for a Tour stage win. Instead, after doing the hard part on the Sarenne, he lost the stage on the run towards Alpe d’Huez.
Carapaz finishes the job
Once Carapaz had the lead, he did not hesitate. He opened the gap quickly, taking 10 seconds, then 20, then 25 as the road began to rise again towards the finish.
Behind, Kuss fought to stay on the podium of the stage, while Evenepoel launched from the GC group with 3 kilometres remaining. Del Toro briefly lost a few metres, and Pogačar slowed to help him regain contact.
Evenepoel rode clear, chasing the stage podium rather than threatening the win. He passed Kuss on the finishing straight to take second, while Carapaz crossed the line alone in the polka-dot jersey.
For EF Education-EasyPost, it was a remarkable end to the Alpine block. Carapaz had won stage 18, taken the mountains classification on stage 20, and added another stage win on the final mountain day. After spending much of the Tour attacking without reward, the team finished the mountains with two wins and a jersey.
Evenepoel secures second overall
Evenepoel’s late attack did not bring the stage win, but it reinforced his position as the clear runner-up in the Tour. He finished second on the day, 26 seconds behind Carapaz, and put time into Pogačar, Del Toro and the rest of the podium contenders.
The Belgian ends the mountains in second overall, 6:26 behind Pogačar. That gap says plenty about Pogačar’s dominance, but Evenepoel’s Tour has still been a strong one. He won on Plateau de Solaison, dominated the time trial in Thonon-les-Bains and kept himself clear of the young riders fighting behind.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe also placed Hindley seventh on the stage after his day in the break, giving the team another visible role in the final mountain stage.
Evenepoel could not overturn the yellow jersey fight, but he has made second place his own. With only Paris to come, that is effectively settled.
Del Toro protects white and the podium
Del Toro’s ride may have been the most important part of the day for UAE after Pogačar’s yellow jersey. The Mexican came under pressure from Decathlon CMA CGM and Seixas, then responded by attacking the group himself on the Sarenne.
He finished with Pogačar at 1:05, ahead of Seixas, Skjelmose and Ayuso, who came in at 2:55. That extended his advantage over Seixas in the young rider and podium battle.
Overall, Del Toro remains third at 9:42, with Seixas fourth at 11:56 and Martinez fifth at 13:02. The podium is now effectively set before Paris: Pogačar, Evenepoel, Del Toro.
That is a huge result for UAE. After losing McNulty and looking stretched in the final week, they are still set to finish with yellow, white and two riders on the overall podium. Pogačar did the work himself when needed, but Del Toro also answered a major question on the final mountain day.
Seixas loses time but keeps fourth
Seixas had looked like the rider most likely to challenge Del Toro for third overall and the white jersey. Stage 20 was his final serious chance, and Decathlon CMA CGM rode accordingly.
Prodhomme and Riccitello were both used to raise the pace on the Sarenne, and for a moment it looked like Seixas might be preparing a move. Instead, Del Toro attacked first, and Seixas was the rider distanced.
The Frenchman lost time but not his fourth place overall. He now sits 11:56 behind Pogačar, still ahead of Martinez, who moved within range but did not overhaul him.
For Seixas, it is still a major Tour, but the final mountain day showed the difference between threatening the podium and actually taking it. Del Toro had one more response when it mattered.
Carapaz owns the final week
Carapaz’s Tour has changed completely in the final Alpine stages. He was already visible earlier in the race, but the last three mountain days transformed his result.
He won at Orcières-Merlette on stage 18. He took the polka-dot jersey on stage 19 despite being caught by Pogačar on Alpe d’Huez. He then sealed the mountains classification and won again on stage 20, wearing the jersey he had fought so hard to take.
That is a complete final-week campaign: stage wins, classification success and repeated attacking. He was the most combative presence in the mountains, and unlike many riders who animate the race, he converted that effort into tangible reward.
His duel with Paret-Peintre gave the mountains classification a real storyline. His chase of Kuss gave the final stage its tension. His finishing ride gave EF one of the standout images of the Tour.
Pogačar reaches Paris in control
Pogačar did not win stage 20, but he did not need to. He ends the final mountain stage with a 6:26 lead over Evenepoel, with Del Toro third and UAE still in control of the race’s two most important jerseys.
The Slovenian’s day was more restrained than his stage 19 win, but in its own way just as revealing. He could have chased the stage, but instead he managed Del Toro’s effort, paced the group when required, and kept the team’s podium plan intact.
The image of Pogačar pacing Del Toro up the Sarenne was one of the clearest signs of UAE’s priorities. Yellow was already safe. The task was to get the white jersey and third overall through the last mountains intact.
They did that. With only the shortened final stage to Paris remaining, Pogačar is one day away from another Tour de France victory.
A brutal final mountain day
Stage 20 had almost everything: an early hors catégorie climb, a deep breakaway, Pedersen attacking for green, Carapaz sealing polka dots, Ayuso trying to move up GC, Kuss attacking for Visma, Seixas cracking, Evenepoel accelerating late, and Pogačar acting as mountain domestique for Del Toro.
It also had the cruelest moment of the final week. Kuss looked close to the win, then crashed twice and watched Carapaz ride past. The American still finished third, but the opportunity had gone.
For Carapaz, it was the opposite: a day where persistence, form and fortune all aligned. He had the legs to take the jersey, the resilience to keep chasing Kuss, and the composure to finish once the chance came.
The final mountain stage belonged to him. The Tour, barring disaster in Paris, belongs to Pogačar.
Tour de France 2026 stage 20 result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Getty
