LONDON, 2nd September, 2026 (WAM) -- On stage 1 of the Lloyds Tour of Britain, UAE Team Emirates-XRG began the race in strong fashion, placing Tim Wellens in third and Florian Vermeersch in seventh. The pair now sit handily in the general classification ahead of the four remaining stages to come.

Held in and around Lincoln, stage 1 of the 22nd Tour of Britain already came to define this year's race. With five ascents of the cobbled Michaelgate climb on the parcours, the peloton exploded into countless fragments on Wednesday afternoon.

For UAE Team Emirates-XRG, both Wellens and Vermeersch tracked a dangerous move on the second ascent of the climb, and this breakaway ultimately contested the stage honours. Their advantage over the majority of the peloton at the finish was in excess of three minutes, ensuring that the riders in the front group will more than likely contest the general classification spots later in the week.

Earlier in the day, a traditional breakaway had gone up the road in search of much-sought-after television time. Their advantage clocked over two minutes in parts, but Netcompany INEOS had been determined to make their presence felt before the race hit the five laps of a circuit in Lincoln.

Thanks to the British team's work, the breakaway took a gap of less than a minute onto the first ascent of the Michaelgate climb, and their time out front was numbered from this point on. The Netcompany INEOS squad blocked the road on the first ascent, but heading into the second time up the climb, the pace was well and truly on.

For his part, Wellens tried to lay down a searing attack on the fourth ascent of Michaelgate, putting the squeeze on his rivals out front. This aggression continued into the final 10km, with both Wellens and Vermeersch trading attacks for UAE Team Emirates-XRG.

It was Vermeersch who, at one point, developed the most threatening attack. The Belgian snuck clear inside the closing 2km and opened up a gap of 10 seconds over those behind, with a first win in the Emirati squad's colours on his mind.