Antonio Tiberi delivered a strong performance on Stage 3 of Cro Race, attacking on the decisive climb, taking maximum KOM points at Skitača and finishing second in Labin to move into second place overall and take the lead in the Mountain classification.
The 174.5-kilometre stage from Krk to Labin was the first major test for the general classification, with the decisive action coming in the final part of the race. After a relatively flat opening two-thirds, a small breakaway was gradually brought back as the peloton approached the demanding Skitača climb.
At 3.2 kilometres averaging 11.7%, with ramps reaching 21.5%, Skitača shattered the peloton. UAE Team Emirates–XRG set a fierce pace, reducing the group to a handful of riders and picking off the remaining breakaway riders one by one.
When Tobias Svarre (Uno-X Mobility) attacked, Tiberi was among the few riders able to respond. The Italian then countered over the top, taking the maximum KOM points and briefly going clear alone with around 22 kilometres remaining.
Behind him, Tim Wellens bridged across to Svarre and the pair began chasing Tiberi. With rolling terrain making it difficult for Antonio to maintain his advantage alone, the two chasers eventually closed the gap with around 3 kilometres to go.
The race was then decided on the steep, technical finish in Labin, 1.6 kilometres at 6.3%, including cobbled sections and gradients that increased towards the line. Tiberi moved to the front with around 150–250 metres remaining, but Svarre produced the strongest final acceleration to take the stage victory.
Tiberi crossed the line second and, with the result, moved up to second place in the general classification while also taking the Mountain classification lead.
For Bahrain Victorious, it was a significant day in the GC battle, with Tiberi showing both the climbing strength and attacking ability to put himself firmly into contention heading into the remaining stages.

Antonio Tiberi comments on his second place and his performance today:

“Certainly, there is a little bit of disappointment, but after reflecting on everything, we can only be happy. First and foremost, the whole team was truly excellent. Everyone did a great job today, gave 100%, and we were able to execute the plan exactly as we had intended.

I tried to attack on the climb to see if I could make it to the finish alone. With a little more luck and perhaps just a little more in the legs, I might have been able to do it. In the end, they caught me, and then I tried in the sprint, but Svarre was stronger, so I can only congratulate him. From around the final kilometre, he was doing almost all of the pulling, and you could already see on the previous climb, where I made my attack, that he was in really excellent condition. He was definitely very strong, so congratulations to him.

Other than that, we can be satisfied. There are still some stages ahead of us, and we will certainly do our best to reach Sunday knowing that we have given everything, and without any regrets or looking back.”

Gorazd Stengelj explained the race in details:
“It was a bit hectic after the finish because we didn’t know we had won the KOM jersey. We hadn’t calculated those points, our focus was purely on whether we could win the stage. Our main decision was whether to stop Antonio and wait for the two riders behind, or continue with the attack and try to maintain the gap. In the end, the KOM jersey was a nice collateral gain.
Our plan today was to make the race as hard as possible. It didn’t quite go as we had planned, because we wanted more riders in the breakaway, ideally with some of our guys there as well, which would have made the race harder for the riders behind. The break managed to build a gap of more than six minutes, so we started working from behind, especially on the climbs, to make the peloton tired, control the race and gradually bring the breakaway back.
Antonio was the strongest on the main climb, but they were able to bring him back. On the final climb, Svarre was either stronger on the climb or simply timed his effort better. He took the win and we finished second, which also moved us into second place in the GC.
Now we’ll see how we can take advantage of that tomorrow on the Učka stage and into the finish in Rijeka.”