Kristoff rejoices in his ride into the midnight sunset
August 8 th 2025 - 18:25 [GMT + 2]
A living legend in the Norwegian cycling books, Alexander Kristoff is about to take a bow out of racing as he intends to hang up his wheels at the end of the current season. The 2025 Arctic Race of Norway is his last race in home soil, and he has duly obliged the occasion by netting his eighth stage win in this event at Sorreisø, finish town of the 2nd stage of this 12th edition of the world’s northernmost road cycling race. The Uno-X rider honored the great work from his teammates all day long, and their excellent final lead-out, and defeated Tom Van Asbroeck (Israel - Premier Tech) and Karsten Larsen Feldmann (Coop - Repsol) by several bike lengths in the deciding sprint. Israel’s Corbin Strong kept the Midnight Sun jersey as Kristoff raised his arms in victory, rejoicing in his ride into the iconic midnight sunset that characterizes summer in Northern Norway. The GC battle will heat up this Saturday with the summit finish atop Målselv.
106 riders took the start in the 2nd stage of the 2025 Arctic Race of Norway, held between Tennevoll and Sørreisa over a 166,5-kilometre course, lumpy on its first half and rather flat on its second. As the flag dropped at 14.12, three Norwegian riders went on the offensive: Georg Rydningen Martinsen (Lillehammer CK), Morthen Wang Baksaas (Norwegian National Team) and northern lights jersey holder Storm Ingebrigtsen (Coop - Repsol). Three more riders set off in pursuit shortly after: Jelle Johannink (Unibet Tietema Rockets), Josh Burnett (Burgos Burpellet BH) and Yentl Vandevelde (Flanders - Baloise). The latter got distanced midway through the climb to Lapphaugen summit (Cat 1, km 13,2), atop which Johannink and Burnett managed to bridge back with the front group as Baksaas defeated Ingebritsen to take full points for the KOM classification. The bunch was 3’00” adrift at this point, driven by the Israel-Premier Tech team of the Midnight Sun jersey wearer Corbin Strong. Later on, Uno-X Mobility would cooperate with them.
Ingebrigtsen and Baksaas battle for the northern lights jersey
Johannink got dropped on the ascent to the summit of Gratangsbotn (Cat 1, km 35,7), where Baksaas gave Ingebrigtsen a run for his money and came out victorious yet again. The tables turned later, though, as the Coop-Repsol powerhouse defeated the Norwegian National Team rider atop the last climb of the day, Lavangsedeit summit (Cat 2, km 63,3), to extend his tenure of the northern lights jersey sponsored by Aibel. Baksaas would later be first across the intermediate sprint in Sjøvegan (IS, km 73,5), where the pack was 1’30” in arrears of the four men at the head of the race. Several riders tried to move away from the peloton on a hill at kilometre 89, with Eirik Vang Aas (Coop - Repsol) managing to go clear and join the breakaway with an impressive, punchy effort.
Late, unsuccessful attack by Kevin Vermaerke
Three laps to a 13,7-kilometre circuit that included a gravel sector awaited the riders at Sorreisø. At its entrance (km 125,6), the five-man unit at the front of the race held a 1’15” gap over the bunch. Baksaas took maximum bonus seconds at the first passage through the intermediate sprint in Sorreisø (IS, km 136,5), and got distanced from the break shortly after. The remaining four escapees kept 30” on the peloton 22 kilometers from home, yet were caught after riding again through Sorreisø (IS, km 150,2), this time led by Vang Aas. Abram Stockman (Unibet Tietema Rockets) then tried to break away on his own, yet he was quickly overtaken by Kevin Vermaerke (Picnic-PostNL), who was alone in the lead at the exit of the last passage through the gravel sector. The American rider held a 10” gap with 5 to go, yet was brought back by an excited peloton. With the finish line in sight, a crash affecting Equipo Kern Pharma’s Pau Miquel derailed the efforts of the best part of the bunch. Uno-X, though, was already hitting the afterburners and had no issue to deliver Alexander Kristoff in the best possible position to the home straight for him to net the victory.
