Preview of the Classic Var 2024 | Brand-new race with a finish on a legendary mountain: suited for Gaudu and Bardet?

On Friday, February 16th, a brand-new cycling race will emerge in Southern France: the Classic Var. This one-day race starts from the Cote d'Azur and takes participants to a finish at a location bursting with cycling history: Font Faron. Do not confuse this race with the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var, the multi-day event that also takes place annually in February. IDLProCycling.com brings you the details about the Classic Var and introduces the top favorites for the inaugural edition!

The finish location is steeped in history. Mont Faron was part of the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var, Paris-Nice, and for a long time even had its own special climbing time trial. Among the winners of this time trial were Raymond Poulidor, Federico Bahamontes, Tom Simpson, and Charly Gaul. Truly the domain of top climbers. After 1970, this event was discontinued. In 2003, Alexandre Vinokourov won a stage in Paris-Nice with a finish on the climb near Toulon. Now, in 2024, a new chapter for Mont Faron is dawning as the finale of the brand-new Classic Var.

Practical information for the Classic Var 2024

• Friday, February 16th, 2024 
• Participants
  
• Classification: 1.1

Course, weather, and times for the Classic Var 2024

The Classic Var starts on Friday in Saint-Raphaël, on the French south coast. From there, the course heads west. For a long time, the riders will be skirting along the coast, which results in hardly any elevation gain in the first roughly fifty kilometers. After a hundred kilometers, the peloton then moves inland for a tricky finale featuring three climbs. The first challenge is the climb to Signes, a third-category ascent.

The Col du Corps de Garde (8.2 kilometers at 2.9%) follows as a second-category climb and is, on paper, a two-stage rocket. However, the decision will likely be made on the final climb, as the approach does not seem suitable and tough enough to force a major turn of events. The race loops around Toulon and climbs Mont Faron from the west (5.7 kilometers at 8.4%). Starting almost from sea level, the riders climb to an elevation of about five hundred meters. The race finishes on the mountain after 183 kilometers. The climb is never really very steep, but for a good four kilometers, it never drops below six percent and is mostly around eight to nine percent in gradient. A pure climber has a great chance of winning here!

Weather
It's expected to be pleasantly spring-like weather in and around Toulon. The forecast suggests temperatures around sixteen degrees Celsius in Southern France. It's likely to be partly cloudy with a gentle breeze. Perfect weather for racing!

Times
Start: around 11:15 AM
Finish: around 4:00 PM

Favorites for the Classic Var 2024

Note: the participants list is not yet final. Changes may still occur!

The Classic Var can count on quite a few prominent participants. In total, five WorldTour teams are participating, including Arkéa-B&B Hotels, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL, Groupama-FDJ, and Cofidis. Notably, these are the French teams and the team of Romain Bardet. The experienced Frenchman is a strong climber with a good finish. The same goes for David Gaudu of Groupama-FDJ. On paper, they are the top favorites.

But there are many more contenders. Kevin Vauquelin and Clement Champoussin lead for Arkéa. Vauquelin has been in good form for weeks, and Champoussin is strong on medium-length climbs. Cofidis counts on the duo of Guillaume Martin and Ion Izagirre. Israel-Premier Tech relies on two experienced men, namely Michael Woods and Jakob Fuglsang. Fuglsang may be past his peak, but Woods won a fantastic Tour stage last year.

Additionally, watch out for Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, with Aurélien Paret-Peintre, who triumphed in a Giro stage last year, and the all-rounder Benoit Cosnefroy. For Uno-X Mobility, Tobias Halland Johannessen could be a dark horse. The same applies to the experienced Alexis Vuillermoz of TotalEnergies and his teammate Mathieu Burgaudeau. A young rider who could surprise is Lenny Martinez of Groupama-FDJ. Also, keep an eye on climbers like Steff Cras and Chris Hamilton.

According to IDLProCycling.com, who are the favorites for the Classic Var 2024?

Top favorites:David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ), Romain Bardet (dsm-firmenich PostNL)
Outsiders:Kevin Vauquelin (Arké-B&B Hotels), Guillaume Martin, Ion Izagirre (Cofidis), Michael Woods (Israel-Premier Tech)
Long shots: Jakob Fuglsang (Israel-Premier Tech), Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), Benoit Cosnefroy, Aurélien Paret-Peintre (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Mathieu Burgaudeau, Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies), Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ), Clément Champoussin (Arkéa-B&B Hotels)

Classic Var 2024 on TV

The Classic Var will be broadcast on Eurosport on Friday afternoon. On Eurosport 1, the race will be shown directly after the stage in the Ruta del Sol, starting at 3:00 PM.