—- Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) sealed the overall title at the 2026 Lloyds Tour of Britain Men on his first participation after another stunning team performance on stage five in the Scottish Borders, as his teammate Nils Politt (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) took home an emotional stage win in Earlston. 

The 35-year-old Wellens’ victory was forged on the previous stage in North Yorkshire but was tempered on the Scottish lanes, where once again UAE Team Emirates pulled together as a unit to tear the race apart and ensure it was a day of double delight. 

The riders set off from Earlston following a guard of honour for the retiring Ben Swift of Netcompany INEOS and it wasn’t long before the break of the day was established, primarily by the leader of the King of the Mountains competition Michal Schuran (Team United Shipping), who was keen to cement his lead at the top of the standings. The Czech rider was joined by Ben Wiggins (Great Britain Cycling Team), Jonah Killy (Tarteletto – Isorex) and Marcus Sander (BHS – PL Beton Bornholm).

All went to plan for Schuran, who helped his breakaway comrades establish a strong lead on the approach to the three categorised climbs in the stage, with Redstone Rig appearing first and followed shortly by Duddy Bank, where the 30-year-old earned maximum points on both climbs, meaning his lead was now insurmountable and he simply had to finish the stage to take home the jersey.

The approach to the summit at Duddy Bank was also where UAE Team Emirates launched their assault to counter a similar attempt by Netcompany INEOS, drilling on the front of the peloton with five riders including Politt and Wellens, with splits appearing almost immediately on the crest of the climb. 

The climbs continued to come, with final categorised ascent of the day coming at Hardens Hill saw the break be caught and an elite group form at the summit, with all UAE riders bar Felix Grosschartner present, alongside Filippo Ganna and Connor Swift (Netcompany INEOS), with Wiggins and Sander surviving from the break, as Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) took the KoM points over the top. 

The pace was breakneck down the descent and into the first intermediate sprint at Gordon, which was taken by Ganna in his chase for bonus seconds and it was a carbon copy for the second intermediate sprint on the first passage of the finish line, with Ganna taking a total of 20 points in the points classification and six bonus seconds. 

As the group took the bell, it seemed certain the group would contest the win and UAE used their numbers to their advantage, with Politt launched with just over seven kilometres to go, using his raw power to quickly build a 30-second advantage. 

The German would ride alone to the line, where he celebrated by pointing to the sky in honour of his grandfather, who had recently passed away, while behind his teammates rolled in, celebrating the two victories in style, as long time leader of the race Lewis Askey (NSN Cycling Team) held on to second overall and stood on the podium as best overall British rider, while Jasper Stuyven (Fix All Quick-Step) capitalised on the chaos of the day to move into the final step of the overall podium. 

Ganna’s efforts for the podium were not totally in vain as his performances in the intermediate sprints saw him take the lead of the sprint classification, while Schuran successfully finished the stage to take home the King of the Mountains jersey, while also sealing the overall combativity award for the race for his breakaway heroics throughout the week. 

Elliot Rowe (Great Britain Cycling Team) capped off a magnificent week of racing by winning the young rider classification, while his teammate Wiggins was awarded the combativity award for the stage, as elsewhere UAE Team Emirates – XRG took home the best team award for the race. 

On his overall victory, Wellens said, “It was a very successful week. We came here for the GC. And today we also have this stage victory so everything’s been perfect.

“Today to be honest we just wanted to defend the leader’s jersey, we didn’t want to attack, we didn’t want to make a hard race, we just wanted to ride the same, defensive. But then suddenly in the crosswinds INEOS started to ride very hard, we just followed.”

Meanwhile, Politt on his stage victory said: “I have to thank the boys for an amazing week and amazing day for me. This victory is for my grandpa, he passed away some weeks ago so I need to give him something. It was a team effort and it was a victory for the team today.”

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