At first it looked as if Aranburu and Johannessen would clearly decide the stage win between themselves. But in the tough finale of the 167-kilometre stage around Galdakao, the duo played poker for so long that not only the first chasers around Scaroni - also breakaway riders - were able to close in again, but also the overall leader Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM), who once again produced a rapid descent and was able to shake off all the classification riders apart from Ion Izagirre (Cofidis).

Izagirre even overtook the leaders for a moment, but then paid the price in the final 200 metres. In the end, it was Aranburu who was able to keep Johannessen and Scaroni at bay in the uphill sprint. However, Izagirre was still able to celebrate - and not just because of the victory of his Basque compatriot and team-mate. In the overall standings, he has almost closed the gap to third place and is now only one second behind Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe), who is now 2:28 minutes behind Seixas. Lipowitz' team-mate and captain Primoz Roglic also finished 34 seconds behind Aranburu, as did the majority of the top 10. Another Cofidis pro, Emanuel Buchmann, who decided not to start, is no longer in the race. And Juan Ayuso (Lidl - Trek) is also out. The Spaniard has abandoned due to gastrointestinal problems.

For Aranburu, it is the tenth victory of his career. His last victory to date came exactly one year ago - on stage 3 of the Tour of the Basque Country. "All my victories in the Basque Country are very special," he said. There are already three in total. "Yesterday I was sad and frustrated with myself, today I'm over the moon." Aranburu had already been one of the favourites in a similar final the day before, but missed the jump into the leading group.

Tour of the Basque Country 2026 - Results of the 4th stage

>> New role for Primož Roglič: Between team reorganisation and Vuelta mission

>> Tour of the Basque Country: The key moments for victory

>> Unplanned start: Lipowitz in the Basque Country with podium finish

>> Tour of the Basque Country 2026: The favourites - A generational duel

>> Tour of the Basque Country 2026: The most important facts in brief

This is how the 4th stage of the 2026 Tour of the Basque Country went:

A wild first third of the race, reminiscent of the previous day, also characterised the start of stage 4. One attack followed the next without any promise of success at first. After around 60 kilometres, Brandon McNulty (UAE - Emirates - XRG) made his move. Behind the American, a group of more than 30 riders formed, which was left in the peloton under the Decathlon lead.

The mega-group around Ben Healy (EF Education - EasyPost), Quinn Simmons (Lidl - Trek), the Johannessen brothers Tobias and Anders as well as Magnus Cort (all Uno-X Mobility), Aranburu and Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) gained a maximum of up to three minutes on the peloton, McNulty had at best a little more than two minutes on the group.

Lipowitz tests the competition

His long solo ended 35 kilometres before the finish, just before the penultimate climb. There, Uno-X sorted out the group. At the back of the peloton, Visma | Lease a Bike took over the pace and reduced the gap to the front to one and a half minutes. While Lipowitz kept stepping up the pace towards the summit, it was Soler and Tobias Johannessen at the front who ensured that only ten riders rode over the crest together.

After a few skirmishes, it was Anders Johannessen who entered the final climb with a 20-second lead over the group twelve kilometres from the finish. But that wasn't enough for him. Aranburu and his brother were the first to arrive at the top and tackled the last nine kilometres. However, the 20 seconds only lasted until the foot of the uphill finishing straight, as the duo played poker and sometimes rode serpentine lines.

Not only the first chasers around Scaroni were able to catch up again, but also Seixas, who once again really let it rip on the descent. In his wake was Izagirre, who initially flew past everyone else in the last 300 metres. But the chase was exhausting, the last few metres extremely steep. And so it was Aranburu who came out on top in the end.