2026 Rás Tailteann: stage 4 report and results

Conn McDunphy (APS Pro Cycling) takes the yellow jersey of the Rás Tailteann into the final day after a decisive ride over the Wicklow Gap on stage four. The Irishman, who began the day second overall, now leads the race by 52 seconds with one stage remaining.

The stage itself went to Tom Martin (Wheelbase CabTech Castelli) in Baltinglass on Saturday at the end of the 136.5-kilometre route from Carlow. Martin attacked from the front group on the run-in, taking Joshua Dike (Natural Greatness Rali Ale) with him, and outsprinted the Spanish-team rider to the line. Rowan Baker (Isle of Man CC), guesting from JAKROO Handsling, won the sprint for third, 23 seconds back, ahead of Ewan Mackie (Connacht Cycling) and Karl Hall (Hucare Factory). McDunphy was sixth at 27 seconds.

Report

For Wheelbase, it was a complicated kind of day. Tim Shoreman began stage four in yellow after his second place on stage three, but the Wicklow Gap took the race apart. As McDunphy moved to the front group on the long Cat 1 ascent and drove the race over the top, Shoreman lost contact. Aaron King, who had spent much of the day up the road, dropped back to ride with Shoreman through the closing kilometres. By the finish in Baltinglass, the pair were just under five minutes down. Shoreman, who started the stage in yellow, now sits 17th on GC at 4:31.

The stage had already been altered before the flag dropped. The planned ascent of Glenmalure was removed because of concerns over the road surface on the descent, leaving the Wicklow Gap as the day’s central test. Even without Glenmalure, the penultimate stage retained enough edge to remake the race.

The KOM competition was redrawn alongside the GC. Liam Crowley (Team Ireland) took maximum points on three of the day’s eight categorised climbs and stretched his lead in the mountains classification to 54 points. Baker took the Wicklow Gap itself for 15 points, with Martin second over the summit. Hugh Óg Mulhearne, one of just two juniors in this Rás, was again in the early break and picked up KOM points on the opening climbs.

With the GC reshaping around McDunphy on the climb, Martin and Dike attacked from the front group on the road to Baltinglass and stayed clear to contest the stage between them. Martin took the verdict by two seconds, giving Wheelbase a stage to set against the loss of yellow.

Behind McDunphy, Mackie now sits third overall at 1:31 and Baker fourth at 1:45 — a strong race for both guests of the visiting Isle of Man and Connacht set-ups. Danylo Riwnyj (Foran CT), Rás Mumhan winner earlier this year, is fifth at 2:02. Willem O’Connor (O’Leary Stone Kanturk) sits sixth at 2:26, leading both the U23 and County Rider classifications. Lewis is seventh at 2:28.

McDunphy now leads the Rás by 52 seconds from Martin going into the final stage to Dunboyne. Shoreman drops to 17th overall but still leads the points classification, with 40 points to McDunphy’s 36.

The final stage still has to be negotiated, but the shape of the race has been redrawn. McDunphy carries the lead into the last day after one of the defining rides of the week. Shoreman’s yellow is gone — and yet on the day yellow finally left British hands, a British rider won the stage anyway. Three of the first four stages have gone to British riders. Martin’s second place on GC keeps the visiting thread alive into a final day where the race is anything but settled.

Speaking to the Irish Cycling Hub after the stage, Martin said: “Yeah, the stage was so hard for me from the off. It split and then kept on coming back. Obviously, you’re trying to protect him [Shoreman] and it’s a culture of hard racing. At the time, I thought it would be best to get ahead and do a little move and follow them. With the yellow jersey behind, it could make it easier. On the climb it was mega, but I was under pressure at that moment because unfortunately [Shoreman] couldn’t hold on. Then I felt great on the last climb as it split and came back together. Tim was obviously riding with GC, so I just sat on the back for most of it. Then one of my guys [King] jumped 5km out and I went over the top. I rode for it again and yeah, I was happy to win.”

Stage 4 result — top 20

Pos	Bib	Rider	Team	Time
1	43	Tom Martin	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	3h12m42s
2	32	Joshua Dike	Natural Greatness Rali Ale	+2s
3	4	Rowan Baker	Isle of Man CC	+23s
4	85	Ewan Mackie	Connacht Cycling	s/t
5	7	Karl Hall	Hucare Factory	s/t
6	21	Conn McDunphy	APS Pro Cycling	+27s
7	46	George Peden	Team PB Performance	+1m36s
8	98	Willem O’Connor	O’Leary Stone Kanturk	s/t
9	120	Patrick O’Loughlin	Galway Bay CC	+2m20s
10	86	Matteo Cigala	Dan Morrissey	s/t
11	28	Ivan Linser	Cyclesport.com	s/t
12	39	Luke Gibson	O’Neills Spirit Racing Team	s/t
13	75	Fionn Killeen	Team Ireland	s/t
14	37	Archie Peet	O’Neills Spirit Racing Team	s/t
15	132	Lindsay Watson	Caldwell Powerhouse Racing	s/t
16	91	Daire Feeley	Burren CC	s/t
17	6	Maximilian Weber	Hucare Factory	s/t
18	62	Oliver Curd	DAS Richardsons	s/t
19	78	Tadhg Killeen	Cycling Leinster	s/t
20	102	Ronan McLaughlin	Foyle CC	s/t

General classification after stage 4 — top 20

Pos	Bib	Rider	Team	Time
1	21	Conn McDunphy	APS Pro Cycling	14h22m29s
2	43	Tom Martin	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+52s
3	85	Ewan Mackie	Connacht Cycling	+1m31s
4	4	Rowan Baker	Isle of Man CC	+1m45s
5	67	Danylo Riwnyj	Foran CT	+2m02s
6	98	Willem O’Connor	O’Leary Stone Kanturk	+2m26s
7	24	Adam Lewis	APS Pro Cycling	+2m28s
8	32	Joshua Dike	Natural Greatness Rali Ale	+2m49s
9	16	Niek Hoornsman	West-Frisia	s/t
10	86	Matteo Cigala	Dan Morrissey	+3m56s
11	25	Liam Flanagan	APS Pro Cycling	+4m00s
12	2	Zac Walker	Isle of Man CC	+4m02s
13	91	Daire Feeley	Burren CC	s/t
14	89	Conal Scully	Dan Morrissey	+4m04s
15	132	Lindsay Watson	Caldwell Powerhouse Racing	+4m20s
16	18	Daan Jurriaans	West-Frisia	+4m30s
17	42	Tim Shoreman	Wheelbase CabTech Castelli	+4m31s
18	102	Ronan McLaughlin	Foyle CC	+5m14s
19	120	Patrick O’Loughlin	Galway Bay CC	+5m29s
20	62	Oliver Curd	DAS Richardsons	+5m30s