Favorites stage 4 Volta a Catalunya 2026 | Freezing battle high in the Pyrenees

Like almost every day in this year’s Volta a Catalunya, the stage begins with climbing. The riders roll out from Mataró, and the first rise already arrives after just eight kilometres at the Coll de Parpers. After an intermediate sprint, the road tilts upward again on the second-category Alt de Sant Feliu de Codines. It keeps rising and falling for a long stretch, with two more intermediate sprints along the way, before the character of the stage changes with around 60 kilometres remaining.

From there, it is a long drag uphill for roughly 50 kilometres. The road does not bite immediately, but the closer the riders get to the finish, the more demanding it becomes. The final climb officially starts with 11.4 kilometres to go, although the road has already been climbing for some time by then. From that point, the ascent averages 7.6 percent, with ramps up to 12 percent. It is not an all-out monster, but it is certainly no gentle climb either. Add the altitude to the equation and the ingredients are there for a spectacular mountain stage. Official start is at 12:45 local time, with the finish expected at around 16:50. The summit at Vallter sits at 2,110 metres.

Times
Start: 12:45 PM local time
Finish: approx. 4:50 PM local time

Catalonia has been on echelon alert for much of the week, but that should not be the main talking point on stage 4. A light breeze and sunshine are expected lower down, yet the conditions at the finish are a different story. Vallter is a ski resort, and it is forecast to be bitterly cold there, with temperatures around minus one degree Celsius. The riders are in for a shivering finale.

Jonas Vingegaard showed on stage 3 that his legs are in excellent shape with that sharp attacking move, and after his overall victory in Paris-Nice, the Visma | Lease a Bike leader has to be viewed as the standout favorite. With support from riders such as Sepp Kuss and Jørgen Nordhagen, the Dane looks ideally placed to make the first big mountain finish of the race his own. Could he take a fourth win of the month?

If he is to do so, he will likely have to deal with Remco Evenepoel. The Belgian was runner-up on the opening day and again looked strong in the crosswinds on Wednesday, although he also crashed. The early signs suggested he had escaped major damage, but the extent to which that fall might affect him on Thursday remained unclear heading into stage 4. Should it prove an issue, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe can switch naturally to Florian Lipowitz as an alternative leader.

João Almeida of UAE Team Emirates-XRG will be relieved that the echelons were neutralised before they could do serious GC damage, although the team did lose an important lieutenant in Jay Vine. That leaves Almeida leaning more heavily on Brandon McNulty and Marc Soler. Lidl-Trek can play several cards through Mattias Skjelmose, Giulio Ciccone and Derek Gee-West, while Bahrain Victorious bring the climbing punch of Lenny Martinez and Santiago Buitrago.

INEOS Grenadiers are without Kévin Vauquelin, so Oscar Onley appears to be their clear leader, though Carlos Rodríguez is also in the line-up. EF Education-EasyPost have both Richard Carapaz and Georg Steinhauser available, while Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale can look to Felix Gall and Matthew Riccitello. Movistar pin their hopes on Enric Mas and Cian Uijtdebroeks, and Tom Pidcock will once again be the main man for Pinarello-Q36.5.

There is plenty of climbing quality on the start line, and there are outsiders too. Ben O’Connor and Felix Engelhardt offer Jayco AlUla extra options, while XDS Astana can turn to Lorenzo Fortunato and Harold Martín López. Mikel Landa recently said he is not focusing on the general classification, but Soudal Quick-Step still have strong mountain support through Valentin Paret-Peintre and Filippo Zana.

Top favorites: Jonas Vingegaard (Visma | Lease a Bike)
Outsiders: Florian Lipowitz, Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), João Almeida (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello - Q36.5)
Long shots: Lenny Martinez, Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious), Derek Gee-West, Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek), Oscar Onley (INEOS Grenadiers), Richard Carapaz, Georg Steinhauser (EF Education-EasyPost), Felix Gall, Matthew Riccitello (Decathlon CMA CGM), Enric Mas, Cian Uijtdebroeks (Movistar), Mikel Landa, Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step)