News & Racing
A closer look at the route and the stacked start list for the second Monument of the year.
Gruber Images, Kristof Ramon, Cor Vos
What has already been an absolutely spectacular spring campaign is set to ratchet up the drama even more on Sunday as the peloton takes on the Tour of Flanders. As if racing in the beating heart of Classics country in pursuit of Monumental glory was not enough to commend De Ronde van Vlaanderen on its own, this year’s race should be a special treat as so many stars have aligned to give us a start list for the ages.
Defending champion Tadej Pogačar and three-time winner Mathieu van der Poel headline the cast as expected, while Remco Evenepoel’s debut in the race adds a whole new element of intrigue. And then there’s Wout van Aert, who has been so close to getting back to winning ways this year. This is the first time since the World Road Championships in 2023 that all four of those riders (and Mads Pedersen!) have lined up together for a major one-day event.
Assuming you’ve already read Abby Mickey’s preview of the women’s race, here’s everything you need to know about the 2026 men’s Tour of Flanders …
The favorites
We’ll break down the contenders more thoroughly below, but as a sneak-peek, here are our top favorites for Saturday’s race.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐: Tadej Pogačar
⭐⭐⭐⭐: Mathieu van der Poel
⭐⭐⭐: Wout van Aert, Mads Pedersen, Remco Evenepoel
⭐⭐: Christophe Laporte, Florian Vermeersch, Jonas Abrahamsen, Jasper Stuyven
⭐: Matthew Brennan, Paul Magnier, Romain Grégoire, Biniam Girmay, Kasper Asgreen, Alec Segaert, Matteo Trentin, António Morgado, Gianni Vermeersch, Magnus Sheffield, Per Strand Hagenes, Tim van Dijke
It’s hard to look past Pogačar and Van der Poel as the favorites again.
When and how to watch
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