Giro 2026: Paul Magnier now truly in pole position for purple jersey

Paul Magnier surprisingly won the eighteenth stage of the Giro d'Italia on Thursday, a stage that on paper seemed mainly suited for breakaway riders and punchers. Thanks to his victory, the Frenchman also regained the purple points jersey. He is now suddenly back in pole position to bring the Maglia Ciclamino to Rome.

Magnier led the points classification for a long time, but in the fourteenth stage Jhonatan Narváez took over the lead. In the following stages, it went back and forth. Magnier regained the purple jersey on Sunday in Milan, but lost the prize again on Wednesday in Andalo.

Narváez appeared to have a good chance of holding onto the purple jersey until the end, because before the start of the eighteenth stage he had a twelve-point lead over Magnier. Moreover, the stage to Pieve di Soligo seemed to suit the Ecuadorian better, giving him an opportunity to extend his advantage.

But things turned out differently. Narváez did gain one point at the intermediate sprint, but to the surprise of many, Magnier survived the steep Muro di Ca’ del Poggio (1.1 km at 12.1%) in the finale. The Frenchman from Soudal Quick-Step then sprinted to the stage win—after a superb lead-out by Jasper Stuyven—and secured fifty points towards the purple jersey. Narváez crossed the line only eighteenth and earned no points.

Magnier has turned a twelve-point deficit (virtually thirteen points) into a 37-point lead. He is now in pole position to win the purple jersey, as he gets another chance to score in Rome. Narváez will still be able to contest the intermediate sprints in Friday and Saturday’s mountain stages, but each sprint offers a maximum of twelve points. So the likelihood of Narváez closing the gap appears slim.