Antonio Tiberi claimed a brilliant solo victory on Stage 3 of the UAE Tour, winning atop the new summit finish of Jebel Mobrah after the 183km stage starting in Umm Al Quwain.
After a largely controlled day on the flat run-in, the race ignited on the steep final climb. Felix Gall (Decathlon–CMA CGM) launched the first major move with 6km to go, with Tiberi immediately following before making his decisive attack with 4km remaining, opening a gap as the gradients spiked.
Behind, leader Remco Evenepoel began to crack on the steepest slopes and ultimately surrendered the red jersey, losing 2:04. Isaac del Toro mounted a late chase and clawed time back in the closing kilometres, but Tiberi held firm to the line to win by 15 seconds.
The result moves Tiberi into the Red Jersey as race leader and also the White Jersey as best young rider, sitting 21 seconds ahead of Del Toro on GC. Another key GC showdown is expected on Jebel Hafeet (Stage 6).
A delighted Tiberi commented:
“It’s amazing. This is a dream for me, and I still need to realise what I’ve done. I started the season with really good sensations right from the training camps. Then, in my first race, I felt that I was already close. I had been waiting for this moment to come, and today it finally happened.
It’s even more special to achieve it on such a hard climb here in the UAE. I came here with the goal of finishing in the top five, maybe even the top three. I think today I showed that I can also try to win the UAE Tour, and from now on I will definitely go for the victory.”
