Paul Magnier to make Milan-Sanremo debut for Soudal Quick-Step, with Stuyven also in the Wolfpack line-up

Jasper Stuyven is also part of the seven-man squad. The 33-year-old Belgian has an excellent history with Milan-Sanremo, having finished in the top ten on five occasions. His finest moment came in 2021, when he surprised the favourites by cresting the Poggio with the best riders before attacking at the end of the descent and holding off the chasing group all the way to the Via Roma.

For Magnier, the story is very different. The versatile French fast man has never ridden Milan-Sanremo before, and it will be just the second Monument of his career after he finished 62nd at the Tour of Flanders last year. Even so, he will line up as a dangerous outsider if the race comes back together for a reduced sprint. Magnier has already taken two wins in 2026, both of them in the Volta ao Algarve, underlining why Soudal Quick-Step are willing to place so much confidence in him for Saturday’s race.

His form after that was a little less convincing. An eleventh place at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad was followed by a quieter showing at Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne, while Tirreno-Adriatico did not unfold exactly as planned either. Magnier also crashed on the final stage there, although the team clearly feel he escaped any serious consequences, as they are still pinning significant hopes on the young Frenchman for Milan-Sanremo.

Soudal Quick-Step know exactly what it takes to win the longest one-day race on the calendar. The team most recently conquered Milan-Sanremo with Julian Alaphilippe in 2019, and sports director Davide Bramati is well aware of how unpredictable the race can be. On the team website, he said: “It’s the first Monument of the year and the start of one of the season’s best months. It’s also a race where anything can happen and so many scenarios are possible. The squad we are taking there is a strong one and very motivated to fight for a good result on the Via Roma. Of course, we know it’s not going to be easy - it never is in a Monument race - but we are more than ready to show the Wolfpack spirit and give our best on Saturday.”

With Magnier and Stuyven in the squad, Soudal Quick-Step have both youth and experience on their side. Magnier gives them a fast finisher who could survive a hard race, while Stuyven offers proven Monument pedigree and the know-how that comes with having already mastered the decisive finale once before. The rest of the line-up is made up of Pepijn Reinderink, Laurenz Rex, Fabio Van den Bossche, Casper Pedersen and Maximilian Schachmann.