Cipressa-lite in Catalonia as UAE and Vingegaard take over and Pidcock, Evenepoel lose out in the sprint
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Follow us on GoogleDorian Godon won the opening stage of the Volta a Catalunya on Monday. After what had been a relatively calm day for long stretches, the race exploded in the finale, with Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe, UAE Emirates-XRG and Bahrain Victorious all turning the screw on a punchy run-in. That made the uphill sprint even harder than expected, perfectly suited to Godon, who beat Remco Evenepoel by the smallest possible margin.
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Barely two days after Tadej Pogačar’s victory at Milan-Sanremo, the next WorldTour race was already on the programme. On Monday, the peloton rolled out for the start of the seven-day Catalan stage race, with plenty of big names in attendance. Defending 2025 winner Primož Roglič was not at the start this time, but that did nothing to diminish the quality of the field.
With Jonas Vingegaard, Evenepoel and João Almeida all lining up, the Tour of Catalonia could count on a star-studded cast. Still, on paper the opening stage in and around Sant Feliu de Guíxols looked more like a chance for the fast men who can survive the climbs. Last year, Matthew Brennan won the same opener ahead of Kaden Groves and Tibor Del Grosso, but none of them were on the start line this time.
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Brennan won the first stage in Catalonia a year ago
INEOS and NSN chase five-man break
Soon after the flag dropped, five riders moved clear: brothers Hugo Aznar (Equipo Kern Pharma) and Unai Aznar (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Josh Burnett (Burgos BH), Tyler Stites (Modern Adventure) and Baptiste Veistroffer (Lotto-Intermarché). Veistroffer collected the first KOM points of the day after just 7.5 kilometres on the Alto de Romanyà, a climb of 3.1 kilometres at 4.6 percent.
The five leaders quickly built an advantage of almost four minutes, but on the approach to the Alto de Sant Hilari, 16 kilometres at 2.9 percent, their lead had already been cut to a little more than two minutes. Veistroffer again took the mountain points there. In the peloton, INEOS Grenadiers were working for Godon, while NSN Cycling Team took responsibility for Ethan Vernon
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Red Bull keeps Evenepoel at the front for punchy finale
For a moment it looked as though the breakaway would be caught far from the finish, when their advantage had been reduced to around one minute with 60 kilometres still to race. But that gap then stabilised, until Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe lifted the pace with just over 30 kilometres to go. On a technical descent, team leader Evenepoel was kept expertly near the front.
That acceleration forced those up the road to dig deep again, because the peloton was now genuinely closing in. Veistroffer once more showed strong legs and managed to drag Burnett along with him. Heading into the final 20 kilometres, on roads that were almost constantly rolling up and down, Bahrain Victorious took over on the front. Lidl-Trek also moved into position, sensing that the finale would be far more selective than a straightforward sprint finish.
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Extraordinary sprint after UAE, Vingegaard and Pidcock turn up the heat
Somewhat surprisingly, Veistroffer was not the last escapee standing, although the Frenchman could still console himself with the first mountains jersey of the race. Burnett battled on alone for a while longer, but he too was reeled in before the final 10 kilometres. Under the impetus of UAE Emirates-XRG, the bunch thundered across the undulating roads towards Sant Feliu de Guíxols.
It felt almost like the Cipressa all over again. UAE stormed through the finale with the whole team on the front, immediately raising the question: who exactly were they riding for? Strong riders such as Giulio Ciccone were distanced on the rolling terrain, and with Vingegaard himself also appearing at the front, the pace remained relentless all the way into the final kilometre.
That is where Tom Pidcock hit the wind a little too early, which ended his hopes of bouncing back from his near-miss in Milan-Sanremo. Godon and Evenepoel judged their effort better. In the final metres, the Frenchman from INEOS proved just a fraction quicker than the Belgian from Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe.
Results stage 1 Volta a Catalunya 2026
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
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Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
- Eight riders told to go for stages, and nobody gets one—hard to know what the plan was there. It’ll be interesting to see whether they pick a clear leader next time.bikebuffj10-11-2026
- Was Bernal’s 20th place really their best GC result? I thought he might have finished higher. Either way, it sounds like a rough Tour for the whole team.gearguru3310-11-2026
- Five days in breaks with no stage win is a painful stat. The team had chances, but they need to turn those opportunities into results.julien10-11-2026
- The Onley Vuelta example makes sense: a team with someone to rally around often looks much more cohesive. Hopefully INEOS can build on that rather than expecting a quick return to the Sky years.cadencekingm10-11-2026
- Thomas is right about the ambiguity. Eight riders all chasing stages can end up pulling in different directions, even if nobody’s deliberately working against anyone. They need a clearer plan once the GC leaders are out.robert6510-11-2026
- What a mess. The report makes it sound as though nobody properly explained the decision, and that’s hard to defend.jennifer1910-11-2026
- I’m still learning the rules: does moving left in a sprint automatically bring a penalty, or does it depend on whether the other rider is blocked? It sounds like Brand wasn’t impeded here.patriciaw10-11-2026
- A final decision still needs a proper explanation. If the federation’s complaint goes nowhere, I hope the officials at least review how they handled the riders afterwards.michael5410-11-2026
- Fair play to Lucinda for saying Marie had won fair and square. That kind of sportsmanship matters, especially after such a controversial decision.raceready710-11-2026
- Schreiber beat Brand on the road, so the jury needed to explain clearly why that slight deviation warranted relegation. Being cut off before she could give her account sounds appalling.lindae10-11-2026
