Lenny Martinez fought his way to an impressive third place overall at the 2026 Tour de Romandie, while also securing victory in the Best Young Rider classification after six demanding days of racing across Romandie region of Switzerland.
Following five stages and the opening prologue, Lenny Martinez finished on the final podium behind only reigning World Champion Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates XRG and Florian Lipowitz of Red Bull Bora hansgrohe. It marks another strong WorldTour stage-race result for Bahrain Victorious, who raced aggressively throughout the week.
The final stage from Lucens to Leysin was always set to decide (or confirm) the podium places, with the decisive summit finish coming after a long day of racing. On the final ascent to Leysin, Bahrain Victorious controlled the pace impressively, with Antonio Tiberi and Damiano Caruso delivering a strong lead-out deep into the climb. Their work reduced the group significantly before Lipowitz launched his attack with around three kilometres remaining, with Pogačar immediately responding.
Behind the leading pair, Martinez faced a direct battle with Jørgen Nordhagen of Team Visma Lease a Bike, as both third place overall and the white jersey were on the line. Martinez matched every move and crossed the line on equal time with the Norwegian, preserving both his podium spot and youth classification.
Martinez’s overall podium was built largely on his superb ride in Stage 1, where he finished third on the day in elite company alongside Pogačar and Lipowitz. That performance established the time gap he defended all the way to Leysin.
Our Sports Director Roman Kreuziger said: “Today’s result reflects the whole week and the progress our riders are making. For many of them, it was the first time racing together in this combination, so I’m very happy with how they managed everything.
Lenny may be disappointed with third place, but he should not be. Finishing behind Lipowitz, who was third at the last Tour de France, and Tour winner Pogačar is a very strong result. We had some moments without luck during the week, but the team stayed committed until the finish and earned a podium place.
What is also very important for my collegues and me is that Damiano Caruso leaves Romandie in strong condition ahead of the Giro d’Italia. Antonio, Kamil, Vlad, Robert and Lenny will now recover before the next objectives, while Attila heads to the Tour de Hongrie. This result gives confidence to everyone. Great work from the whole team.”
Lenny Martinez added: “It was a good day. The team positioned me perfectly before the final climb. I waited for the attacks from Pogačar and Lipowitz, but it was too early for me to follow. I also had to watch Nordhagen because he was only seven seconds behind on GC. In the end, I defended my place and the white jersey, but those two riders were stronger for the stage win.”
