Tour de Hongrie

Merlier wins again in the rain

Belgian cyclist Tim Merlier of Soudal Quick-Step won the rainy Stage 3 of Tour de Hongrie 2026 in Szekszárd, thereby regaining the overall lead.

On May 15, sunny weather greeted the cyclists at the foot of the Kaposvár Arena, though storm clouds were already gathering in the distance. All 109 cyclists completing Stage 2 lined up at the starting line—where they were greeted by Károly Szita, Mayor of Kaposvár; Tamás Dér, city council member and Head of the Healthy Kaposvár 2030 program; Balázs Rothmer, former professional cyclist and third-place finisher in the 1997 Tour de Hongrie; Gábor Szél, president of the Kaposvár Cycling Club; and Károly Eisenkrammer, General Director of Tour de Hongrie. The riders faced two categorized climbs, three intermediate sprints, 152 km, and a near-certain bunch sprint.

This time, the breakaway went off early, with two Hungarian riders making the cut: Erik Fetter (Team United Shipping), wearing the white jersey, and Ádám Révész (Campana Imbalaggi), were joined Bauke Mollema (Lidl-Trek), Victor Vercouillie (Flanders Baloise), and European cyclo-cross champion Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen - Altez Industriebouw). The five-man group maintained a lead of under two minutes throughout, and in the rain, which at times came down heavily, Vegard Stake Laengen (UAE Team Emirates) worked hard for yellow jersey wearer Benoit Cosnefroy.

Erik Fetter had a great day: he won the first two intermediate sprints of the day as well as the mountain sprint in Gödre, while finishing second behind Vercouillie in Zobákpuszta. Meanwhile, Vercouillie took the lead in the mountain points classification. With 36 kilometers to go, Révész crashed and fell behind the breakaway, while the rain intensified. Of the breakaway riders, the peloton first caught Fetter and Vanthourenhout, then Mollema—and finally caught up with Vercouillie as well 15 kilometers before the finish.

The race came down to a bunch sprint. Fernando Gaviria (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA) launched a long sprint, but he couldn’t hold on in the final meters, allowing Tim Merlier to overtake him at the finish line. Gaviria finished 2nd, while his compatriot, Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates) finished 3rd. The best Hungarian sprinter was once again Bálint Kárpáti: the young national team member finished in 13th place.

With his victory, Merlier retook the lead in the general classification—he now holds a 6-second advantage over Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates) and a 10-second lead over Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates). The Belgian sprint star also leads the points classification.

On May 16, the Tour de Hongrie continues with its queen stage: a 188-kilometer route between Mohács and Pécs, featuring four categorized climbs and a mountain finish, awaits the cyclists.

47th Tour de Hongrie, Stage 3 (Kaposvár - Szekszárd, 152 km)