As it happened: Stage winner disqualified after taking incorrect route to the finish on stage 3 of Itzulia Basque Country

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The peloton took on 156.6km from Zarautz to Beasain

Itzulia Basque Country 2025 stage 3

Itzulia Basque Country 2025 stage 3 (Image credit: Itzulia Basque Country 2025)

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Hello and welcome to CyclingNews' live report on stage three of the Itzulia Basque Country 2025.

Today's stage goes from Zarautz and finishes in Beasain after 156.3km over very hill terrain. There are seven categorised climbs along the route with the final climb being Lazkaomendi (1.4km with an average gradient of 10% max of 18%) topping out with 5km to the finish. 

Unfortunately, after crashing yesterday, Victor Campenaerts (Visma-Lease a Bike) has abandoned the race. 

Another rider to leave the race today is yesterday's stage winner, Caleb Ewan (Ineos Grenadiers). With no more sprint stages in he race, it makes sense for the Australian fast man to leave after getting his win. 

Half an hour until the race is scheduled to officially start. There is a neutralised section for the riders to take first, though, which is due to set off in 20 minutes. 

Jersey wearers:

Neutral start

156.6km to go

Multiple attacks on the front of the peloton. 

There is still no breakaway. Attacks keep coming but nothing is sticking just yet. 

The riders have started the first climb of the day, the Meaga, and there is still no breakaway. The Meaga climb is 2.9km with an average gradient of 4.1&. 

Seven riders are trying to get a gap on the peloton. 

KoM (Meaga)

Attack!

Multiple riders have joined Okamika at the front of the race...

Breakaway caught. 

Attack!

The riders are onto the second climb of the day, the 13.9km Andazarrate which has an average gradient of 2.6%. 

130km to go

Atack!

Counter attack!

Both groups are, once again, caught by the peloton. 

The peloton is absolutely flying at the moment with the average speed said to be above 50kph after almost 30km of racing. 

More attackers on the front of the peloton trying to form a breakaway. 

Attack!

Armirail and Vercher only have around 10" on the chasing peloton. 

Mechanical

There's a new counter move by eight riders in the peloton. 

Counter move caught. Armirail and Vercher are still clear out front. 

There's a group of 20 riders between the leading duo and the rest of the peloton as the rapid pace splits the bunch. 

Chase group:

KoM (Andazarrate)

The two leaders have 15" on the huge 28 man chasing group and 1'10" on the peloton. 

Straight onto the next climb after a brief descent. The 4km long Alkiza climb which averages 6.9% in gradient. 

Armiral and Vercher are doing an incredible job of staying out front. 

Vercher has been caught by the chasing group as Armirail continues solo. 

Every single rider aside from Armiral has been caught by the peloton. 

Armirail now has just 25" on the peloton. 

100km to go

Counter attack

KoM (Alkiza)

Multiple counter attacks

Several groups dot the road between the leader, Armirail, and the peloton as the race heads onto the highest climb of the day, the Santa Ageda. The climb is 9km long and has an average gradient of 6.9%. 

Delbove and Juaristi have been caught by the peloton. 

Simmons, Le Berre, Perez, Braz Afonso, Schmid, Miquel and Díaz join together to form a chase. 

Chasing group caught by the peloton. 

Armirail is, once again, the only rider out front. The French time trial champion is hoovering up mountain points and has a gap of just over a minute on the peloton. 

90km to go

The team that has taken control of the peloton is UAE Team Emirates-XRG. 

The new pace setting in the bunch sees the time gap drop to just over a minute to Armirail out front. 

Dropped from peloton

KoM (Santa Ageda)

The peloton are now just 30" behind Armirail. 

80km to go

Attack!

Abandon

Bilbao is a minute off the back of the peloton. 

Armirail is at the base of the Mandubia climb which is 5.3km with an average gradient of 5.3%. 

Kuss, Del Toro and Vlasov have been caught by the peloton led by Movistar just 10" behind Armirail. 

Ben Tulett (Visma-Lease a Bike), Ion Izagirre (Cofidis) and Marc Hirschi (Tudor) are in the group including Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) which are over a minute off the back of the peloton. 

Attack!

Attack!

Around 15 riders are just behind Lipowitz with UAE Team Emirates-XRG's McNulty leading as Max Schachmann (Soudal-QuickStep) is trying to get back to the front as he is out of the back. 

Lipowitz reeled back in by this favourites group and the pace drops. McNulty comes back to the front to try and keep the pace high. 

Dropped

Attack!

70km to go

Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Movistar are sharing the work in the peloton with Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) leading the bunch. The yellow jersey of Max Schachmann (Soudal-QuickStep) has made it back to the peloton again. 

KoM (Mandubia)

60km to go

Aleksandr Vlasov just gave his all for Red Bull-Bora-Hangrohe leader, Florian Lipowitz, and now the German is on his own but he has closed the gap superbly. 

Lipowitz manages to drag the leaders back. 

Despite the attackers getting caught, McNulty has continued the extremely high pace for Almeida who sits on his wheel. Yellow jersey of Max Schachmann (Soudal-QuickStep) has managed to drag himself into this favourites group. 

Attack!

Tow of the counter attackers:

Soler is joined by Berthet and Molard. 

The pace in the peloton has completely gone. They are almost at a stand still. Soler is just 28" down in the GC with Berthet at 1'16" and Molard at 1'32".

Guillaume Martin (Groupama-FDJ) tries to get clear of the bunch but he is markd out by multiple riders including Del Toro and Lipowitz. 

50km to go

Cofidis now take up the chase in the peloton for Alex Aranburu. 

The rider for Cofidis who was riding has now had to pull off the front after emptying the tank. Bahrain Victorious now move to the front along with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Soudal-QuickStep. UAE Team Emirates-XRG trying to disrupt the chase. 

The gap goes out to 1'12" between the leaders and the peloton. This is such a dangerous move. 

Intermediate sprint (Beasain)

40km to go

Suddenly, Movistar hit the front of the peloton with Visma-Lease a Bike. The pace is very high and the gap drops to 50". 

Attila Valter (Visma-Lease a Bike) comes to the front with Axel Zingle on his wheel. That is a superb ride by the rapid French puncheur. 

Molard has been dropped by Berthet and Soler up front. 

Almeida come to the front of the peloton with Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) and Lipowitz right with the Portuguese star. 

Schachmann is right at the back of the group but is starting to lose touch as the pace continues to be relentless. 

Berthet drops Soler at the front of the race. 

The trio of Almeida, Buitrago and Lipowitz lead the bunch and are almost blocking any new riders coming through as they set a tempo they are comfortable with. 

Schachmann looks to have found his legs and has moved up in the main peloton. 

Three very fast riders still in the peloton are Alex Aranburu (Cofidis), Axel Zingle (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Axel Laurance (Ineos Grenadiers). 

Berthet goes over the top of the Gainza climb. Soler about 15" after him with Molard not too far off the back of his wheel. 

The pace has suddenly changed in the peloton as Buitrago has significantly upped the pace leaving about 12 riders in the bunch. Yellow jersey, Schachmann has been dropped. 

KoM (Gainza)

Molard has made it back to Soler. 

Bruno Armirail (Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale) will wear the mountains jersey tomorrow. 

About 10 riders are coming back to the peloton including yellow jersey, Schachmann. 

Caught by peloton

30km to go

Attack!

João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) is not in the yellow jersey group. He is 40" behind that group and, suddenly, UAE Team Emirates-XRG look to be in trouble as they only have Del Toro in the Schachmann group. 

Almeida now realises that he is in trouble and could be seeing his race disappear up the road. He is pushing hard to bridge along with Cofidis who are working for Aranburu. 

Intermediate sprint (Alegia)

Del Toro has sat up and joined the Almeida group and is working hard and is closing the gap between the Schachmann group and his. 

Berthet still has 49" on the Schachmann group with a 1'15" gap on the Almeida group with 17km to go. 

Leader: 

Axel Zingle (Visma-Lease a Bike), Alex Aranburu (Cofidis), Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek) and Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor) are some of the riders who have rejoined the Almeida group. 

10km to go

Just 3km to the final climb of the day, the Lazkaomendi climb which is 1.4km with an average gradient of 10% with a max kick of 18%. 

Both McNulty and Del Toro have done all they can for Almeida in the chasing group with 20" between the Schachmann group and the Almeida group. 

Onto the final climb of the Lazkaomendi. Vlasov leads the chasing group onto the ascent just 11" behind Berthet. The Almeida group are about to make contact as they start climbing. 

Attack!

Tejada dropped by the German duo as they catch and pass Berthet. 

However, spearing through the crowd of exhausted riders is the Spanish national champion, Alex Aranburu (Cofidis), dragging them back. 

Attack!

KoM (Lazkaomendi)

Attack!

Alex Aranburu (Cofidis) flies across the gap to Almeida using his stunning descending skills but the rest of the group are coming back to them. 

Flamme Rouge!

Almeida is caught by the chasers as Aranburu is riding away after picking the correct side of the roundabout. 

500 metres to go and the Spanish national champion is riding to the line to a likely victory for Cofidis. 

Alex Aranburu of Cofidis wins stage three of the Itzulia Basque Country 2025. 

Max Schachmann (Soudal-QuickStep) takes third on the day and takes four bonus seconds to keep hold of the yellow jersey and, actually, extends his advantage in the overall standings. 

Top 10

GC after stage three

Make sure to have a read of our post race report as the Basque local storms to victory and a resurgent Max Schachmann keeps hold of yellow...

Tomorrow's stage is very similar to today with the day starting at today's finish town of Beasain before heading 169.6km to Markina-Xemein via seven categorised climbs. Should be a superb watch. 

Romain Grégoire of Groupama-FDJ is the new stage winner after Alex Aranburu (Cofidis) was disqualified for allegedly taking the wrong route to the line. 

Aranburu went the wrong way around the final roundabout which allowed him a greater advantage than he may have otherwise had. 

So it is 22-year-old Romain Grégoire of Groupama-FDJ who is celebrating now and heartbreak for the Spanish national champion, Alex Aranburu of Cofidis. This may be appealed by Cofidis as it didn't appear to be clear that it was the wrong way round.

Make sure you stay connected here on CyclingNews as all the updates from this race and others from today come in. 

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