Stage 6 Tour of the Basque Country 2026 favourites | Basque weather finally arrives for tricky finale

Five stages, three wins for Paul Seixas. On Friday, the Tour of the Basque Country was once again the young Frenchman's playground. With one stage to go, the overall victory appears beyond doubt, but the final stage promises to be a spectacle. Not just because of the course, but also the weather... IDL Pro Cycling looks ahead.

A fitting conclusion in the Basque Country. The sixth stage starts in Goizper-Antzuola, and the climbing begins immediately. 6.9 kilometres after the start, riders reach the summit of the first climb, the Asentzio (5.4 km at 6.7%). After a short valley comes the second ascent of the day, the Elosua. It is longer and steeper (7.2 km at 7.5%), and it is not the only time the riders will climb it.

A sizeable loop is ridden twice. It includes the Elosua, as well as the Azkarate (3.2 km at 6.3%) and an intermediate sprint in Elgoibar, which on the second pass serves as the Red Bull kilometre. The Elosua is the toughest climb of the day, but the summit of the second ascent lies over 55 kilometres from the finish.

After the second passage of the Azkarate and Elgoibar, riders will head into the finale, which includes another ascent of the first climb, the Asentzio. This time it is climbed from a different, and harder, side. It is 7.2 kilometres of climbing at 5.2%, but the final 3.4 kilometres average over 8%. A lot can happen here, not least because the finish line waits at the bottom of the descent.

Times
Start: 2:07 p.m.
Finish: approx. 5:20 p.m.

Well, well — how lucky we have been in the Basque Country this week. It has been consistently dry and warm, but the luck had to run out at some point. Temperatures will not rise above 14 degrees, and significant rain is expected. It will be a very wet finale on Saturday, with wind gusts up to force 4 also set to play a significant role.

As in previous days, much will depend on the fighting spirit of Paul Seixas. The Frenchman from Decathlon CMA CGM has dominated the Basque Country, and he appears to hold all the cards. Does he want to win again? Then there seems to be little anyone can do about it. After his third victory the fatigue was visible, so he may well be happy to sit back and save his legs.

Could a rival beat him? Then it seems it would have to come from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe. Florian Lipowitz finished second on Friday and was able to stay with the race leader. Primož Roglič also came through the day well. The surprising Javier Romo (Movistar) was also incredibly strong and is less of a threat to Seixas in the overall standings. Alongside Cian Uijtdebroeks, the team also has an additional spearhead.

Other riders to watch are Harold Tejada (XDS Astana), Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost) and the evergreen Ion Izagirre (Cofidis). Can they shake off Seixas? It seems unlikely. If the young man can pick up another victory without too much effort, he will.

But the attackers can also smell their chance. The overall classification appears to be decided, and that may give the breakaway riders some room. The move Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) could not finsh on Friday might still be possible on Saturday. Kévin Vauquelin (INEOS Grenadiers), Alex Aranburu (Cofidis), Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility) and Christian Scaroni (XDS Astana) have all been prominent this week.

GC riders Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) and Ben Tulett (Visma | Lease a Bike) lost both significant time, so may be looking for revenge on the final day. Further names to keep an eye on are Steff Cras and Ilan Van Wilder (Soudal Quick-Step), Guillaume Martin (Groupama-FDJ United), Marc Soler, Brandon McNulty (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor).

Top favorites: Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) and Ben Healy (EF Education - EasyPost)
Outsiders: Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Ben Tulett (Visma | Lease a Bike), Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek), Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Christian Scaroni (XDS Astana)
Long shots: Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility), Alex Aranburu, Ion Izagirre (Cofidis), Kévin Vauquelin (INEOS Grenadiers), Primoz Roglic (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Javier Romo (Movistar), Julian Alaphilippe (Tudor), Harold Tejada (XDS Astana), Alex Baudin (EF Education - EasyPost)