Tour of Guangxi 2026 – Stage 6: Youngster Widar leaves Pidcock behind to claim the overall victory

The mountain finish at Nongla is a fixture on the route and has featured in all seven editions of the tour. This time, it took 166 kilometres to reach the race’s climax. The wide roads make the steep gradients – well into double figures – in the final stretch seem less gruelling than they actually are. As a result, it is often the rider who waits the longest who comes out on top here. And this time, that was Widar.

With 300 metres to go, Louis Barré (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) picked up the pace from the front, with only Pidcok and Widar able to keep up. The Briton upped the pace yet again, but the gap was still too wide, so in the end it was Widar who managed to extend his lead over his closest pursuers by six and ten seconds respectively as he crossed the finish line. Marco Brenner (Tudor Pro Cycling) then crossed the line in fourth place, eleven seconds behind. The day’s results at the top of the field also reflected the standings in the general classification.

Widar’s late toilet break at just the right time

“These are my first victories on the WorldTour,” said Widar, who only a few days ago celebrated his very first win as a professional at Tre Valli Varesine. “It feels a bit surreal to have beaten some of the big names here. But the week went perfectly for us.” Apart perhaps from the final few kilometres of this stage race, but in the end, the victory speaks for itself here too. “With 20 kilometres to go, I needed a wee and found myself at the back of the peloton. Even though the roads are so wide, it took me ages to get back to the front. So I couldn’t attack much earlier than I did in the end. When the others started attacking, I realised I could still step it up a gear. And I wanted to fight for every second at the end, because I didn’t know exactly what the situation was behind me.”

Brenner was also pleased in the end, having established himself as the most successful German professional in the peloton, particularly in the second half of the year. “I’m delighted to finish the Tour of Guangxi with a strong result. Fourth place on the final stage and fourth place in the general classification are a positive way to end the race and a fine way to round off a successful season,” said the Augsburg-born rider.

Tour of Guangxi 2026 – Stage 6 results

Here’s how Stage 6 of the 2026 Tour of Guangxi unfolded

A five-man breakaway group comprising the three Belgians Laurenz Rex (Soudal Quick-Step), Jonas Rickaert (Alpecin – Premier Tech) and Arjen Livjns (XDS Astana Team), as well as Martin Urianstad Bugge (Uno-X Mobility) from Norway and the Chinese rider Yutao Shen (national team), broke away early and dictated the pace until the final climb.

When the terrain began to climb five kilometres from the finish, Bugge, Rickaert and Livjns were still half a minute ahead of the peloton, but their lead was soon to be overtaken. As the last rider in the breakaway, Bugge was caught 3,600 metres from the finish on the final race day of his career.

Joseph Pidcok, Tom’s brother and team-mate, then made the first move. Remy Rochas (Groupama – FDJ United) took the lead from the Briton, whilst a breakaway quickly formed in the peloton. The Frenchman fought his way to a lead of a few seconds and held on until 1,800 metres from the finish, before Peter Øxenberg (Netcompany INEOS) took the lead as the road began to climb steeply for the first time.

Pidcock waits a long time; Widar even longer

The 20-year-old Dane seemed to have taken the field by surprise, and the gap to the chasing group, led by last year’s winner Paul Double (Team Jayco AlUla), widened considerably. When the climb became steep again, it was Barré who brought the group back together. There were still 300 metres to go. The Frenchman broke away with Pidcock and Widar on his wheel, but was then unable to keep up with the other two.

When Pidcock picked up the pace, only Widar managed to keep up. But only for a moment, because the Belgian then flew past him and, with a powerful sprint in the final metres, secured victory by a few bike lengths. Among the chasing pack, Brenner had almost caught up with Barré and thus finished fourth