The third road stage of the 2026 Santos Tour Down Under saw Sam Welsford (Ineos Grenadiers) take the win. The Australian sprinter was comfortably the fastest in the 140.8-kilometer stage between Henley Beach and the small town of Nairne, in South Australia.
The Australian rider, who secured his first victory with his new team, beat Denmark’s Tobias Lund Andresen (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) and New Zealand’s Lewis Bower (Groupama-FDJ United), who finished second and third, respectively.
In 2025, Welsford had won three stages of the Tour Down Under, the first World Tour (1st division) race of the year. But he hasn’t won since.
The overall classification continues to be led by Jay Vine (UAE), who was delayed by a crash in the final section, although the times were neutralized. Vine remains ahead of his Ecuadorian teammate Jhonatan Narváez, by six seconds, and the Swiss rider Mauro Schmid, by one minute and five seconds.
Regarding the Colombians, Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain – Victorious) from Bogotá finished in 65th place with the same time as the winner, while Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Team Emirates – XRG) from Boyacá finished in 111th place, more than two minutes behind Welsford.
The Australian World Tour race continues this Saturday with the fourth and penultimate stage, a 130-kilometer route between Brighton and Willunga, in South Australia.
Santos Tour Down Under (2.UWT)
Results Stage 3 | Henley Beach – Nairne (140,8 km)
| 1 | Sam Welsford | INEOS Grenadiers | 3:26:43 |
| 2 | Tobias Lund Andresen | Decathlon CMA CGM Team | ,, |
| 3 | Lewis Bower | Groupama – FDJ United | ,, |
| 4 | Jake Stewart | NSN Cycling Team | ,, |
| 5 | Aaron Gate | XDS Astana Team | ,, |
| 6 | Žak Eržen | Bahrain – Victorious | ,, |
| 7 | Finn Fisher-Black | Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe | ,, |
| 8 | Matthew Fox | Lotto Intermarché | ,, |
| 9 | Anthon Charmig | Uno-X Mobility | ,, |
| 10 | Jensen Plowright | Alpecin-Premier Tech | ,, |
Ranking General
| 1 | Jay Vine | UAE Team Emirates – XRG | 9:50:16 |
| 2 | Jhonatan Narváez | UAE Team Emirates – XRG | 0:06 |
| 3 | Mauro Schmid | Team Jayco AlUla | 1:05 |
| 4 | Harry Sweeny | EF Education – EasyPost | 1:12 |
| 5 | Marco Brenner | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | 1:14 |
| 6 | Andreas Kron | Uno-X Mobility | 1:16 |
| 7 | Michael Leonard | EF Education – EasyPost | 1:22 |
| 8 | Andrea Raccagni | Soudal Quick-Step | ,, |
| 9 | Adam Yates | UAE Team Emirates – XRG | 1:23 |
| 10 | Anthon Charmig | Uno-X Mobility | ,, |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico