Boucles de la Mayenne 2026 Preview | Brennan, Pedersen, and the return of Kooij in France!

Wednesday, 27 May 2026 at 12:15

In the shadow of the Giro d’Italia, the Boucles de la Mayenne also gets under way on Thursday. The start list for the French four-day race features plenty of interesting names, so we are in for four attractive days of racing. How, what and where? IDL Pro Cycling brings you up to speed on everything you need to know about this 2.Pro race.

This is the 51st edition of the Boucles de la Mayenne, and a look at the roll of honour shows a fairly varied list of winners. Last year Aaron Gate won for Astana, while the names of Mathieu van der Poel also appear in 2018 and 2017. Sprinters such as Arnaud Démare and Bryan Coquard have also won it before.

Recent winners Boucles de la Mayenne

2025 Aaron Gate

2024 Alberto Bettiol
2023 Oier Lazkano
2022 Benjamin Thomas
2021 Arnaud Démare
~~2020 CANCELLED~~
2019 Thibault Ferasse
2018 Mathieu van der Poel
2017 Mathieu van der Poel
2016 Bryan Coquard

Boucles de la Mayenne 2026, Route, stage favourites and times

Prologue, Thursday 28 May 2026: Laval - Laval (5.4 km)

The French stage race begins on Thursday with a 5.4-kilometre prologue. It is not completely flat, but there are certainly no real hills. It is mainly the many corners that will make life difficult for the riders. The heat is somewhat avoided, as this is an evening prologue.

Favourites:

Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step)
Rui Oliveira (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
Maikel Zijlaard (Tudor).

Times:

Start: 18:15 CET (first rider)
Finish: 20:32 CET (last rider).

Stage 1, Friday, May 29, 2026: Renault Saint-Berthevin - Château-Gontier-sur-Mayenne (172.4 km)

For the first road stage, the organisers have chosen a long, flat opening stretch towards a local finishing circuit. With 40 kilometres to go, the riders reach the finishing loop, which has to be completed three times. At 13.1 kilometres long and with only a few corners, it is not a particularly difficult circuit.

Favorites
Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike)
Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek)
Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM)

Times
Start: 12:20 p.m CET
Finish: around 4:20 p.m CET

Stage 2, Saturday, May 30, 2026: Aron - Pré-en-Pail-Saint-Samson (215.1 km)

Saturday brings the longest stage of the four-day race, at just over 215 kilometres. As on the previous day, the finale is again contested on a finishing circuit. This time there are plenty of elevation changes, with short but stingingly sharp climbs coming thick and fast. A little queen stage, really!

Favorites
Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
Senna Remijn (Alpecin-Premier Tech)
Louis Barré (Visma | Lease a Bike)

Times
Start: 11:40 a.m CET
Finish: around 4:57 p.m CET

Stage 3, Sunday, May 31, 2026: Cossé-le-Vivien - Laval (147.7 km)

The race concludes on Sunday with a stage that looks, on paper, like one for the sprinters. After a largely flat opening, the finale is again raced on a finishing circuit, this time 5.2 kilometres long with nine corners. The final corner comes around 500 metres from the line, so timing will be everything.

Favorites
Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM)
Juan Sebastian Molano (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
Alberto Dainese (Soudal Quick-Step)

Times
Start: 12:30 p.m CET
Finish: around 4:06 p.m CET

GC Favorites, Boucles de la Mayenne 2026

A prologue and two flat stages, but the Boucles de la Mayenne overall classification will most likely be decided in the hills. So we are looking at the riders who can handle that terrain best. One man still stands out in that respect, and he is in form: Benoît Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) looks the man to beat in France.

There is no shortage of big names in France, but above all this is a race for fast riders. Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike) can both get over a small rise, but if the lighter riders attack, can they follow? That remains to be seen. For the returning Olav Kooij (Decathlon), it looks a bit too much; the French team is mainly banking on Noa Isidore.

If Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) produces a strong prologue, he could go far in the general classification. He also has Pepijn Reinderink alongside him. Alpecin-Premier Tech has Senna Remijn as a young rider with ambition, while Lotto-Intermarché has his generation rival Matys Grisel in that role. EF Education-EasyPost has key names in Vincenzo Albanese and Mikkel Honoré. Lidl-Trek can also lean on Jakob Söderqvist alongside Pedersen.

Unibet Rose Rockets have been enjoying Clément Venturini’s spring all season, and Lander Loockx and Jelle Johannink could also play a role. Tudor have named German Marco Brenner as their leader, and NSN are banking on Brady Gilmore. Visma | Lease a Bike have Brennan, but also Louis Barré if it gets harder. Groupama-FDJ can count on Thibaud Gruel, while TotalEnergies have Anthony Turgis in their ranks

Start list, Boucles de la Mayenne 2026

Data powered by FirstCycling.com

IDL Pro Cycling GC top picks, 2026 Boucles de la Mayenne?

Top favorite: Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
Outsiders: Matthew Brennan, Louis Barré (Visma | Lease a Bike), Ethan Hayter (Soudal Quick-Step) and Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek)
Long shots: Vincenzo Albanese, Mikkel Honoré (EF Education-EasyPost), Clément Venturini, Lander Loockx (Unibet Rose Rockets), Brady Gilmore (NSN), Thibaud Gruel (Groupama-FDJ), Senna Remijn (Alpecin-Premier Tech) and Matys Grysel (Lotto-Intermarché)

How to watch Boucles de la Mayenne 2026 on TV

Viewers can watch the racing on Eurosport/HBO Max. The prologue will not be shown live, but the 3 road stages will be.

In North America viewers can watch all the action on FloBikes.

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