Antonio Morgado Secures Second Podium At Challenge Mallorca Week

Remco Evenepoel opened the road season with a clear solo win at Trofeo Serra Tramuntana, while António Morgado delivered another strong performance for UAE Team Emirates-XRG by sprinting to second place, building on Wednesday’s victory at Trofeo Calvià during the same Challenge Mallorca series.

The Belgian rider from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe attacked from the peloton and rode alone to Santuari de Lluc, finishing more than one minute ahead. Behind, Morgado led the chase group over the final climbs and out-sprinted Christian Scaroni and Mathys Rondel to secure the runner-up position on Friday.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG again placed several riders near the front. Morgado’s late effort on the Coll de sa Batalla, measured at 8.4km with an average gradient of 4.9 percent, proved decisive for second place, while teammate Felix Großschartner crossed the line shortly afterwards in sixth, five seconds behind the Portuguese rider.

The squad also gained recognition through 19-year-old Adrià Pericas, who joined from the team’s Gen Z structure during the winter. Pericas launched himself into the day’s main breakaway and impressed on the Coll de Puig Major, a 5km ascent at 4.9 percent, earning the combativity award after spending extensive time ahead.

Earlier in the week at Challenge Mallorca, Morgado had already shown strong form by winning Trofeo Calvià. The young rider also supported UAE Team Emirates-XRG during Trofeo Ses Salines Team Time Trial, where the group finished fourth, offering further evidence of collective depth and consistency across the early-season races.

On the Coll de Sóller, another key climb, Pericas and Pablo Castrillo from Movistar proved the strongest among the escapees. Evenepoel bridged across from the peloton on this ascent. Pericas initially held the Belgian’s wheel for a notable spell before Evenepoel accelerated again and moved clear alone.

Evenepoel’s move shaped the rest of Trofeo Serra Tramuntana. While the Belgian extended the gap on the approach to Santuari de Lluc, Pericas crested the Coll de Sóller in second position. The young UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider was then reeled in by the peloton later, yet still stepped onto the podium for his combativity prize.

The final phase of the race centred on the Coll de sa Batalla, where Morgado attacked in pursuit of Evenepoel’s lead. Morgado formed a small chasing group with Christian Scaroni of XDS Astana Team and Mathys Rondel of Tudor Pro Cycling. In the closing metres, Morgado used a sharp acceleration to beat both rivals for second place.

Großschartner arrived just five seconds after Morgado, taking sixth place and underlining another productive outing for UAE Team Emirates-XRG at Challenge Mallorca. The team now turns attention to Saturday’s Trofeo Andratx-Pollença, the fourth of five races in the series, where several of the same riders are expected to feature again.

Morgado reflected on the effort and looked ahead to the next start, saying: "I feel good, it was a good race, and it is nice. Today was good weather, a good race, it was a hard one. But I feel good and I did my best. Everybody knows Remco [Evenepoel] is one of the strongest in the world, and he deserved to win, he was the strongest. I am going to race tomorrow if everything goes right, so let’s see. With these big guys it is hard [to win], but we never know. Our team races to do one thing, and that is win, so we are going to try."

The day at Trofeo Serra Tramuntana therefore brought UAE Team Emirates-XRG a second podium of the week for Morgado, a combativity award for Pericas, and another top-ten result for Großschartner, reinforcing strong early-season form across the squad during Challenge Mallorca.

With inputs from WAM