After the start for sprinters, which saw Paul Magnier wear the Yellow Jersey – Turismo do Algarve, the second day of the Volta ao Algarve brought another kind of adventure for the peloton, with the climb to Alto da Foia.
On the first mountain finish in the Algarvia, Paul Seixas was the strongest, on an afternoon when the cyclists experienced a new route on the climb to Foia, which offered a different kind of difficulty and made the stage even more exciting.
2ª Etapa Portimão – Alto da Faia, Monchique 157,10Km, 19.02.2026 da 52ª Volta ao Algarve, de 18 a 22 de Fevereiro de 2026 Foto: Igor Martins / FPC
Breakaway prevailed in the first intermediate counts
The start was in Portimão, in the Zona Ribeirinha, and as on Wednesday, a group of almost a dozen riders, all from Portuguese teams, managed to form a breakaway before the ten thousand meters mark.
It was from this group of eight cyclists that the winners of the first intermediate sprints of the afternoon emerged. Iker Bonillo Martin (Feira dos Sofás – Boavista) took the lead at the Paderne sprint, while Tomás Contte, the owner of the Blue Jersey – Save Water, was the fastest to pass the first KOM, in Picota.
Not everyone managed to stay in the breakaway, and by the second difficulty, the KOM in Alferce, the group was down to just five riders: Contte was once again the first to pass.
The Argentine cyclist scored a hat trick in the mountain counts in Casal, before the hot spot of Casais and Serenada. Toms Skujins, from Lidl-Trek, was the fastest in the first, Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates XRG) in the second, where, importantly, Juan Ayuso, leader of Lidl-Trek, took the opportunity to add another bonus second, which would later prove decisive.
Lidl-Trek worked hard, the trio of contenders took the reins of the race, and Seixas introduced himself to the Algarve
The climb to Foia began, Lidl-Trek worked hard and split the peloton, until only the trio that is the favorite to fight for the general classification remained: Ayuso, Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM Team), and João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates XRG).
At the age of 19, and considered one of the next big things of world cycling, Seixas did not hide and took the reins of the group, always closely marked by the opposing duo. Oscar Onley (INEOS Grenadiers) and Matthew Riccitello, Seixas’ teammate at Decathlon, also managed to join them, but in the last few meters before the finish line, the trio regained their advantage.
Then, in an exciting finish, Paul Seixas beat Ayuso in the sprint and proved that he is ready to swim in the shark tank: his introduction to the Algarve was complete.
“Of course I’m happy, it’s special to win here for me and it’s also my first ProSeries victory. It’s incredible. It was amazing to compete against Ayuso and João Almeida, I used to watch them win races on TV and today I’m able to compete against them and win. It’s crazy. It’s incredible to have won, but winning against both of them is even better”, said the young Frenchman after the race.
Ayuso was inches away from celebrating victory, but he ended the day smiling: he is now the owner of the Yellow Jersey – Turismo do Algarve, with the same time as Seixas, who came second. João Almeida is third, seven seconds behind the pair.
“I feel great. The team did a good job, I’m happy to be in yellow and I hope we can hold on to the lead in the GC until the last day”, said Ayuso.
2ª Etapa Portimão-Fóia (Monchique) 147,2Km, 19.02.2026 da 52ª Volta ao Algarve, de 18 a 22 de Fevereiro de 2026 Foto: Rodrigo Rodrigues/ FPC
The Green Jersey – Crédito Agrícola, for points, and the White Jersey – IPDJ, for youth, belong to Paul Seixas, while Tomás Contte remains the leader in the mountains, with the Blue Jersey – Save Water. The Água Monchique combativity award was won by Hugo Nunes (Credibom / LA Alumínios / Marcos Car), who was one of the riders in the breakaway of the day.
The stage is set for the fight for the general classification, which will continue on Friday in the individual time trial in Vilamoura.
Schedules
February 18 | Vila Real de Santo António – Tavira | 117.5 miles | 12:00 p.m. – 4:27 p.m.
February 19 | Portimão – Foia | 92.2 miles | 12:45 p.m. – 4:25 p.m.
February 20 | Vilamoura – Vilamoura (CRI) | 19.5 km | 1:05 p.m. (provisional)
February 21 | Albufeira – Lagos | 175.1 km | 11:00 a.m.-3:20 p.m.
22/02 | Faro – Malhão | 148.4 km | 12:05 p.m.-3:42 p.m.