Team Picnic PostNL

UAE Tour | Race Report

UAE Tour
February 20, 2026
Matthew Dinham
Matthew Dinham
Mattia Gaffuri
Mattia Gaffuri
Fabio Jakobsen
Fabio Jakobsen
James Knox
James Knox
Niklas Märkl
Niklas Märkl
Tim Naberman
Tim Naberman
Casper van Uden
Casper van Uden

Stage 6: Al Ain Museum -> Jebel Hafeet

The penultimate day of racing at the UAE Tour saw a blisteringly fast stage to the mountain top finish of Jebel Hafeet. From the start there were a lot of attacks in the peloton where Mattia Gaffuri, in his very first WorldTour level race, managed to make the nine rider breakaway. It was a strong move with a lot of good rouleurs but the bunch never really slowed and allowed the gap to grow out, so as a consequence the pace was on the whole day. Coming into the lower slopes of the ascent with ten kilometres to go, Gaffuri’s advantage stood at only one minute and he was ultimately caught with around six kilometres remaining.

Results

  • 48.485/H
  • 168KM
  • 1646M
  • Stage
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1DEL TORO IsaacUAE Team Emirates - XRG3:27:54.000-
2PLAPP LukeTeam Jayco AlUla0:12.000-
3GALL FelixDecathlon CMA CGM Team0:21.000-
44GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL5:44.000-
49DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
72MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL13:19.000-
77KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
90NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL13:38.000-
114JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL16:44.000-
122VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL17:55.000-

Stage 5: Dubai Al Mamzar Park -> Hamdan Bin Mohammed Smart University

A traditional UAE Tour sprint stage awaited the peloton on Friday with a very flat route throughout the stage. It was a fierce start to the day though and lots of attacks initially peppered the front of the bunch and made for a high pace. Unfortunately, there was a crash in the bunch which involved Casper van Uden, but he was able to make his way back to the peloton on his spare bike.

Things then settled down with a three rider move up the road, and all attention turned to the fast finale. With everyone arriving fresh coming towards the line, it was a chaotic and hectic finale as the team tried to move up and position Fabio Jakobsen – who was sporting bandages after his fall the previous stage. In the end, Jakobsen followed the wheels but wasn’t able to compete for a top result on the day.

Results

  • 47.257/H
  • 168KM
  • 867M
  • Stage
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1MILAN JonathanLidl - Trek3:33:18.000-
2BLIKRA ErlendUno-X Mobility,,-
3MALUCELLI MatteoXDS Astana Team,,-
16JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
39NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL0:10.000-
42MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
74DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
91VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
100KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
104GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL,,-

Stage 4: Fujairah -> Fujairah

After Wednesday’s day for the climbers, the fast-men in the peloton had their chance once more on Thursday. Depending on the attitude of the peloton, it could have been a day for the breakaway though with the more rolling terrain, so Team Picnic PostNL were represented in the five-man breakaway with James Knox. However, the bunch never allowed the gap to grow out to much more than two minutes. Unfortunately Fabio Jakobsen was involved in a crash coming into the final 20 kilometres, but he was able to remount on his spare bike and continue to the finish. Coming into the finale the team tried to position Casper van Uden as their finisher but on the hectic run-in they were unable to compete for a top result on the day.

Results

  • 44.92/H
  • 182KM
  • 2360M
  • Stage
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1MILAN JonathanLidl - Trek4:03:06.000-
2VERNON EthanNSN Cycling Team,,-
3MILAN MatteoGroupama - FDJ United,,-
17VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
46MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
55DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
75GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
123NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
140KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL4:01.000-
142JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL6:11.000-

Stage 3: Umm al Quwain -> Jebel Mobrah

Stage 3 of the UAE Tour brought the first summit finish of the race, with a 183 kilometre route from Umm al Quwain to Jebel Mobrah. Two riders formed the early breakaway and saw their advantage grow to nearly nine minutes before the peloton gradually brought them back, making the catch on the lower slopes of the final climb. As the pace increased on the steep 13.2 kilometre ascent, attacks split the bunch and the race quickly narrowed to a group of GC contenders. Antonio Tiberi proved strongest at the top, taking the stage victory and overall race lead. For Team Picnic PostNL, Mattia Gaffuri led the team home, gaining valuable experience on his first WorldTour climbing stage.

Results

  • 41.476/H
  • 183KM
  • 2617M
  • Stage
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1TIBERI AntonioBahrain - Victorious4:24:44.000-
2DEL TORO IsaacUAE Team Emirates - XRG0:15.000-
3VAN EETVELT LennertLotto Intermarché0:29.000-
32GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL3:17.000-
47KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL6:31.000-
57DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL8:17.000-
75MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL14:24.000-
83NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL14:38.000-
97VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL16:30.000-
130JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL23:52.000-

Stage 2: Hudayriyat Island -> Hudayriyat Island

Stage 2 of the UAE Tour saw the riders take on a 12.2-kilometre individual time trial on Hudayriyat Island. The focus for Team Picnic PostNL was on getting through the day safely and in the right way, with an eye on the challenges to come. With tomorrow’s first climbing test up Jebel Mobrah on the horizon, the team approached the flat and fast course in controlled fashion. In the end, it was Mattia Gaffuri who set our fastest time of the day as we now turn our attention to the race’s first summit finish.

Results

  • 56.092/H
  • 12.2KM
  • 101M
  • Time Trial
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1EVENEPOEL RemcoRed Bull - BORA - hansgrohe13:03.960-
2TARLING JoshuaINEOS Grenadiers0:05.460-
3CAVAGNA RémiGroupama - FDJ United0:11.410-
69GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL1:07.300-
75VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL1:09.450-
89DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL1:17.600-
92KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL1:19.990-
104NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL1:24.540-
126MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL1:39.410-
143JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL2:38.240-

Stage 1: Madinat Zayed Majlis -> Liwa Palace

The opening day of racing at the UAE Tour saw a slightly shortened route due to strong winds, where the peloton completed the 118 kilometre route with an almost 47 kilometres per hour average speed, due to a fast tailwind. Despite a few potential crosswind spots, nothing materialised and the bunch was all together heading into the uphill kick in the finale. Team Picnic PostNL rode well to bring Casper van Uden into a front position as the road kicked upwards, but the drag went on just too long for the young Dutchman to compete for a result come the finish.

Results

  • 46.908/H
  • 118KM
  • 1018M
  • Stage
  • General classification
  • Points classification
  • Youth classification
  • Teams classification
Pos.RiderTeamTimePoints
1DEL TORO IsaacUAE Team Emirates - XRG2:30:56.000-
2BOL CeesDecathlon CMA CGM Team,,-
3TIBERI AntonioBahrain - Victorious,,-
27VAN UDEN CasperTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
49GAFFURI MattiaTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
50DINHAM MatthewTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
67MÄRKL NiklasTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
71KNOX JamesTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
132NABERMAN TimTeam Picnic PostNL,,-
135JAKOBSEN FabioTeam Picnic PostNL3:04.000-