Another strong day: Wilier-Vittoria still among the front runners at the Cape Epic

New day, same result. The Wilier-Vittoria MTB Factory Team once again proved to be among the most competitive squads at the 2026 Cape Epic, matching the second and fourth places they achieved in yesterday’s prologue.

Over 90 km and 2,150 metres of elevation gain around Montagu, six teams arrived together to contest the stage in a sprint finish. Simone Avondetto and Luca Braidot once again secured second place, while Juri Zanotti, paired with Mathis Azzaro, finished just off the podium in fourth.

As a result, the overall standings remain almost unchanged from yesterday’s prologue, with South Africans Beers and Nortje still leading the race with just four seconds over Avondetto and Braidot. Zanotti and Azzaro remain fourth overall, 26 seconds behind the yellow jersey.

“It’s a shame we didn’t manage to take the win, but the sensations were good again today,” said Avondetto. “The second half of the race became very tactical. A few teams managed to come back and from that point things got a bit chaotic. We don’t really know the final section or the last tricky parts, so the only thing we can do is stay near the front and go all out when we see the finish banner.”

“We’re still missing the win, but the legs are there,” added Braidot. “It was a fast and tactical stage, and it would have been easy to make mistakes — especially in the finale with so many teams at the front. The important thing is that we had no issues. We managed to save a bit of energy and we’ll try again over the next few days.”

“It’s a pity we couldn’t make it onto the podium — in the last corner we weren’t able to get past the South African team in yellow,” admitted Zanotti. “But the signs are positive. We were always at the front and never lost a metre, so overall it’s good. The key thing was to get through this first stage. Did I remember the Cape Epic being this hard? Yes… some traumas you don’t forget,” he joked.

The race continues tomorrow with another demanding stage around Montagu, featuring 102 km and 2,250 metres of climbing, tough in the first half and more technical in the second.