Tom Pidcock out sprints Sepp Kuss to win Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica

Tom Pidcock won the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica. The British rider from Pinarello - Q36.5 was the strongest after a grueling race through the Pyrenees and defeated a strong Sepp Kuss (Visma | Lease a Bike). Thanks to his outstanding domestique Chris Harper, Pidcock made a comeback and then finished it off brilliantly in the sprint. Carlos Verona (Lidl-Trek) finished second, and Kuss third.

The Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica is a very new one-day race: it was held for the first time last year. But the cycling in Andorra is fantastic, so it’s no surprise that it turned out to be a top-tier race right from the start. Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) was the strongest in 2025. The Dane wasn’t there this time, but what a field we had here!

Visma | Lease a Bike fielded three top climbers—Ben Tulett, Sepp Kuss, and Jørgen Nordhagen—but they faced competition from riders including Derek Gee-West (Lidl-Trek), Einer Rubio (Movistar), and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello - Q36.5). It was bound to be a thrilling race, as over 4,000 meters of elevation gain were packed into 125 kilometers...

In such a short, explosive one-day race, it’s difficult to break away early. That became clear in the opening stages, but on the seemingly endless Port d’Envalira, fifteen riders ultimately managed to make their move. The biggest names in that group were Sylvain Moniquet (Cofidis), Colin Savioz (Unibet Rose Rockets), Joris Delbove (TotalEnergies), and Jefferson Cepeda (EF Education-EasyPost).

Behind them, Pinarello-Q36.5 kept the gap tight in support of Pidcock. On the Coll d'Ordino, the gap remained at one minute, but on the steep climb to Pardines, the breakaway group fell apart. Cepeda accelerated but was later caught by the peloton. The next rider to attack was Julien Bernard. The Frenchman from Lidl-Trek opened up a gap and was the first to reach the top of Pardines.

This was followed by a tough unpaved section, where he held his own. He made it to the base of the final climb, the Coll de la Botella. Visma | Lease a Bike lent a hand in the chase, but Bernard only managed to pull away on the first sections of that climb. When Chris Harper took over, however, things moved quickly. At that moment, Gee-West suffered a unfortunate flat tire: end of story.

Harper broke up the pack and formed a leading group: only six riders were able to keep up, and Bernard was dropped. The group included Pidcock, Kuss, Tulett, Simon Carr (Cofidis), and Carlos Verona (Lidl-Trek). It was just a matter of time before Harper faded, but Pidcock turned out not to be as strong as expected: Kuss sensed his weakness and accelerated 2.5 kilometers from the finish.

The American opened up a small gap, but it was the incredibly strong Harper who single-handedly closed the gap on the climber. Pidcock, Tulett, and Verona couldn’t keep up. A second surge by Kuss proved too much for the Australian, but he still managed to close the gap—with Pidcock and Verona on his wheel. The Brit nearly crashed in the final kilometer, but still finished it off skillfully in the sprint. Verona took second, Kuss third.