Flèche Wallonne 2026 preview: No Evenepoel — can anyone stop Seixas on the Mur de Huy

Monday, 20 April 2026 at 13:24

Two races remain. Then the 2026 spring cycling season is done. Sunday brings Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the fourth Monument of the year — but first, Wednesday's Flèche Wallonne stands in the way. The Mur de Huy will once again sort the contenders from the pretenders. IDL Pro Cycling has you covered.

The Mur de Huy has long been one of cycling's most ruthless finishing climbs. Alejandro Valverde owned it for years, winning five times. Julian Alaphilippe followed with three victories of his own. In more recent memory, 2022 saw Dylan Teuns take an unlikely win, while Stephen Williams claimed a surprise victory in 2024. In between, Tadej Pogačar won the race twice — in 2023 and again in 2025. With the Slovenian absent this year, a new name will be added to the roll of honour.

Recent winners La Flèche Wallone

2025 Tadej Pogacar
2024 Stephen Williams
2023 Tadej Pogacar
2022 Dylan Teuns
2021 Julian Alaphilippe
2020 Marc Hirschi
2019 Julian Alaphilippe
2018 Julian Alaphilippe
2017 Alejandro Valverde
2016 Alejandro Valverde

Route, weather and TV details: La Flèche Walloone 2026

This year's race starts in Herstal, just over the Dutch border — a change that brings the Côte de Trassenter and Côte des Forges into play early. But as always, the race is decided in and around Huy.

The Côte de Cherave (1.3 km at 8.1%) returns after featuring last season, pairing nicely with the Côte d'Ereffe (2.1 km at 5.0%) to set up the Mur de Huy. All three climbs are tackled three times, though the favourites tend to save their best for last. On the flatter roads between ascents, lost ground can usually be recovered — making early attacks a risky gamble.

After 198 kilometres, the race reaches the foot of the Mur de Huy for the final time. The climb is 1.3 kilometres long and averages 9.6% — short, steep, and unforgiving. Whoever hits the wall with the freshest legs wins.

Weather: Conditions look good for Wednesday, with temperatures around 16°C in Huy and a light southerly breeze. A welcome change after two wet editions.

Weather
The weather will be good in Wallonia on Wednesday, and so - unlike the past two years - it will be in Huy. A temperature of 16 degrees is expected there, with the wind blowing slightly in a southerly direction.

Times

Start: 11:30 a.m.

Finish: approximately 4:20 p.m.

Favorites La Fleche Wallone 2026

Note: the start list has not yet been officially confirmed and remains subject to change.

Tadej Pogačar is skipping La Flèche Wallonne, choosing to focus on Liège-Bastogne-Liège instead. His absence opens the door wide — and shifts the spotlight firmly onto one rider. After much speculation, Amstel Gold Race winner Remco Evenepoel, has decided not to race on Wednesday, preferring to rest before Liège.

So the full spotlight falls on Tour of the Basque Country champion Paul Seixas. The youngest ever winner of a WorldTour stage race has been very impressive this spring, but is he suited to the steep slopes of the Mur de Huy?

The 19-year-old Frenchman leads a strong French contingent. Kévin Vauquelin, runner-up at the Flèche Wallonne for the past two years, leads the INEOS Grenadiers challenge alongside French national champion Dorian Godon and Axel Laurance. A crash in Sunday's Amstel Gold Race is a concern for Vauquelin heading into Wednesday.

Romain Grégoire is also in the mix for Groupama-FDJ. The Frenchman has been quietly consistent all spring — fourth at Strade Bianche, Brabantse Pijl, and the Amstel Gold Race. Benoît Cosnefroy, who pipped him in those last two races, starts for UAE Emirates alongside Pavel Sivakov. Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost) and Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious) are further names to watch.

Mattias Skjelmose also deserves close attention. The Lidl-Trek rider was the only one able to match Evenepoel in the Amstel Gold Race. From the Scandinavian contingent, Tobias Halland Johannessen and Andreas Kron (Uno-X) could spring a surprise, while Visma | Lease a Bike will rely on Jørgen Nordhagen — with Matteo Jorgenson, Louis Barré and Ben Tulett all ruled out through injury.

Other names to note: Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Intermarché), Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla), Alex Aranburu, Ion Izagirre, Dylan Teuns (Cofidis), Mauri Vansevenant, Max Schachmann, Aurélien Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step), and Tudor wildcards Marc Hirschi and Julian Alaphilippe.

IDL Pro Cycling top picks: La Flèche Wallonne 2026

Top favorites: Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM)

Outsiders: Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek), Kévin Vauquelin (INEOS Grenadiers), Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) and Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious)

Long shots: Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Intermarché), Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE Emirates-XRG), Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla), Dylan Teuns (Cofidis), Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost) Tobias Halland Johannessen, Andreas Kron (Uno-X) and Jorgen Nordhagen (Visma | Lease a Bike)

How to watch La Flèche Wallonne on TV?

Below you can find where to watch La Flèche Wallonne in English by country:

United Kingdom - HBO Max now carries all of the UK cycling coverage.

USA - You will need a subscription to Peacock to watch the racing in the USA.

Canada - FloBikes carries the stream for Canadian fans. Again you will need a subscription, and times vary depending on location

Australia -Australian fans can watch both the men's and women's races for free on SBS on Demand.
In Europe, you can watch all the action on Eurosport.

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