July 25, 2026 Checkpoint
This is the final checkpoint published according to our usual Monday schedule before a few days of vacation.
The Crypto Race will naturally continue throughout August, but the next updates will not necessarily be published every Monday. The race itself, however, will not be taking a break.
This week, Bitcoin remained almost stable while much of the peloton moved lower.
Akash still holds a substantial lead, but it has once again given back part of its gains. ATOM suffered another decline and lost its place on the podium, even when rewards are included.
CAT 1 — Bitcoin Holds Its Ground as Akash Loses More Momentum
| Rank | Asset | Performance Since January 3 | Weekly Change | Gap vs BTC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Akash | +31.2% | −6.9% | +60.1 pts |
| 2 | Bittensor | −23.4% | −1.7% | +5.4 pts |
| 3 | Bitcoin | −28.9% | +0.3% | — |
| 4 ▲ | Algorand | −31.8% | +4.7% | −3.0 pts |
| 5 ▼ | Cosmos | −35.6% | −7.8% | −6.7 pts |
| 6 | Osmosis | −40.4% | −4.6% | −11.5 pts |
| 7 | Ethereum | −40.7% | +1.0% | −11.8 pts |
| 8 | Avalanche | −54.7% | −4.4% | −25.8 pts |
Akash remains the only CAT 1 asset still in positive territory since the beginning of the race.
Its performance nevertheless fell from +40.9% to +31.2% in one week. Its lead over Bittensor remains comfortable, but has dropped below 55 points, compared with more than 60 points at the previous checkpoint.
Bittensor limited its weekly decline to 1.7% and retained second place. Its lead over Bitcoin is now only 5.4 points.
Bitcoin Settles Into Third Place
Bitcoin gained slightly, rising by 0.3% during the week.
This stability contrasts with the declines recorded by Akash, ATOM, Osmosis and Avalanche. BTC therefore retains third place with a performance of −28.9% since January 3.
Algorand delivered the strongest weekly performance in the category, rising by 4.7%. ALGO moved ahead of ATOM and climbed into fourth place.
Cosmos fell by 7.8%, the largest weekly decline in CAT 1. Its performance since the beginning of the race now stands at −35.6%.
Ethereum gained 1% but remains seventh, just behind Osmosis. Avalanche still sits at the bottom of the ranking with a loss of 54.7%.
CAT 2 — Gnosis Remains Ahead of Bitcoin, but Its Lead Shrinks
| Rank | Asset | Performance Since January 3 | Weekly Change | Gap vs BTC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gnosis | −21.4% | −6.9% | +7.5 pts |
| 2 | Band Protocol | −55.0% | −6.3% | −26.2 pts |
| 3 | Flux | −62.1% | −4.7% | −33.2 pts |
| 4 | Shentu | −63.2% | −0.4% | −34.4 pts |
| 5 | Nolus | −66.5% | 0.0% | −37.6 pts |
| 6 | Lava | −89.3% | −9.2% | −60.4 pts |
Gnosis retains a comfortable lead in the second category.
GNO nevertheless declined by 6.9% this week. Its performance since the beginning of the race fell from −15.5% to −21.4%.
Gnosis remains the only CAT 2 asset outperforming Bitcoin, but its lead over BTC has narrowed to 7.5 points.
Band Protocol remains second despite a weekly decline of 6.3%.
FLUX fell by 4.7% and maintained a narrow lead over Shentu. Less than two points now separate the two assets since the beginning of the race.
Nolus remained stable this week following its sharp decline at the previous checkpoint. NLS retains fifth place with a performance of −66.5%.
Lava recorded the largest decline in the category, falling by 9.2% over the week. Its total loss has now reached 89.3%.
Bitcoin Ranks Third Without Rewards
The main ranking is based exclusively on asset price performance.
| Rank | Asset | Performance Without Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Akash | +31.2% |
| 2 | Bittensor | −23.4% |
| 3 | Bitcoin | −28.9% |
| 4 | Algorand | −31.8% |
| 5 | Cosmos | −35.6% |
Bitcoin consolidates its position in third place.
The main change concerns ATOM, which has fallen behind Algorand following its 7.8% weekly decline.
Bitcoin Also Ranks Third With Rewards Included
At the previous checkpoint, rewards still allowed ATOM to remain ahead of Bitcoin in the adjusted ranking.
That is no longer the case this week.
| Rank | Asset | Without Rewards | With Estimated Rewards |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Akash | +31.2% | +39.5% |
| 2 | Bittensor | −23.4% | −21.5% |
| 3 | Bitcoin | −28.9% | −28.4% |
| 4 | Cosmos | −35.6% | −30.0% |
Rewards still improve ATOM’s performance by approximately 5.6 points.
However, this is no longer enough to offset its price gap with Bitcoin. BTC now holds an advantage of approximately 1.5 points over Cosmos in the adjusted ranking.
Staking therefore continues to reduce losses, but it cannot protect an asset from a significant decline in price.
Rewards also create visible differences in the second category:
| Asset | Without Rewards | With Estimated Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Gnosis | −21.4% | −19.1% |
| Band Protocol | −55.0% | −49.8% |
| Shentu | −63.2% | −55.8% |
| Nolus | −66.5% | −65.6% |
Gnosis remains clearly in first place. Band and Shentu recover several points, without fundamentally changing the ranking.
FLUX and Node Yield
For FLUX, we continue to refer to node yield rather than staking.
Based on price performance alone, FLUX stands at −62.1%.
When an estimated annual node yield of between 37% and 47% is included, depending on the node tier, its overall performance would be approximately:
- −54.3% with an estimated annual yield of 37%;
- −52.2% with an estimated annual yield of 47%.
Node yield significantly improves the result, but it does not compensate for the token’s decline since January.
Conclusion
Akash retains first place in the Crypto Race 2026 with a performance of +31.2%, but its lead continues to narrow.
Bittensor remains second. Bitcoin now occupies third place both without rewards and with estimated yields included.
Algorand took advantage of its weekly gain to move ahead of ATOM. In CAT 2, Gnosis remains the only asset ahead of Bitcoin, despite falling by almost 7% this week.
The previous checkpoint showed that rewards were beginning to influence the ranking.
This one highlights their limits: they can soften a decline, but they cannot always prevent an asset from losing its position.
The Crypto Race will continue throughout August, with a more flexible publication schedule. We will therefore return to the ranking after a few additional stages — perhaps on a Monday, perhaps not.
