Van der Poel Wins, UAE Sparks Questions In Tour de France 2026 Stage 9
Jul 12, 2026
Mathieu van der Poel won Stage 9 of the 2026 Tour de France in Ussel after a hard-fought escape on a stage shortened because of the excessive heat sweeping through France.
The breakaway had to fight all the way to the line, with UAE pulling hard behind and nearly bringing everything back.
In this on-site report, we break down Van der Poel's stage victory, Quinn Simmons' battle in the escape with Derek Gee there to help and the big question raised after the finish by Alex Baudin: why was UAE chasing so aggressively?
Stage 9 turned into one of the strangest and most intense days of this Tour.
