Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026 stage 1 preview | The opening stage could be a GC launch pad for Seixas

The next WorldTour race is just around the corner, and with the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, as the Dauphiné is now called, it is a very fine one straight away. The riders will face plenty of climbing in the opening stage, so if the big names on the well-stocked start list want to make a move straight away. IDL Pro Cycling brings you up to speed!

We start on Sunday in Vizille and the finish may be 146.2 kilometres later: as the crow flies, we will not be far from the start town at the finish. In any case, the riders will get used to it right away, as the road almost immediately heads uphill from the start. It is not yet categorised, but it will still feel tough straight away.

On the Col de l’Arzelier, the first mountain points can be collected. After the 8.6-kilometre climb at 5.7 per cent, it is time to descend, before the Côte de Seyssins appears halfway through the stage (2.6 kilometres at 6 per cent). After a short descent, the valley section is flat again for a while.

The gradients only really start to bite from the Côte de Quaix-en-Chartreuse, as that climb averages 2.3 kilometres at 9.2 per cent. Immediately after that comes the Col de Vence, which with an average gradient of 6 per cent is slightly easier again. Even so, the climbing will already have taken a proper toll.

If the finale has not opened up yet, the Côte de Rousset (8.2 kilometres at 7.6 per cent) will certainly do so. That is the last climb of the day, but also the hardest. The summit comes a little over 20 kilometres from the line, and after a twisting descent the road still rises in phases towards the finish. There are also some bends in the village of Saint-Ismier.

Climbs
39.8 km: Col de l'Arzelier (8.6 kilometers at 5.7 percent)

Times
Start: 11:15 a.m CET
Finish: around 2:50 p.m CET

Dry, sunny and not too much wind: what more could the riders want? On Sunday, top weather is forecast both at the start and the finish, with temperatures reaching up to 27 degrees Celsius. Absolutely lovely!

There are quite a few possible scenarios for this opening stage. First of all, it is conceivable that the general classification riders will go at it straight away. Why not shake the tree already and see whether someone has to concede time very early in the eight-day race? In that case, Paul Seixas (Decathlon) and Isaac Del Toro (UAE) look the most dangerous on paper.

In such a scenario, we also count Matteo Jorgenson (Visma | Lease a Bike) and the INEOS trio Kévin Vauquelin, Oscar Onley and Carlos Rodriguez among the favourites. The British team has a very strong squad and could therefore take control. And of course do not forget the Lidl-Trek duo Juan Ayuso and Mattias Skjelmose, Cian Uijtdebroeks (Movistar), Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X) and Ben Healy (EF).

It is also easy to imagine a scenario in which a strong climbing breakaway stay away until the finish. In that case, the first leader’s jersey could well go to riders such as Harold Tejada, Lorenzo Fortunato (both XDS Astana), Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious), Pablo Castrillo (Movistar), Kevin Vermaerke (UAE) or Alex Baudin (EF). The latter also has a sharp finish.

For pure attackers such as Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Quinn Simmons (Lidl-Trek), Sunday looks too hard, especially because the final climb is the toughest. In-form Benoit Cosnefroy (UAE) will hope he can survive the longer climbs, while someone like Ben Tulett (Visma | Lease a Bike) may be able to profit if the big favourites start watching each other.

A strong climber in the first leader’s jersey seems the most logical outcome, so we should also mention the returning Matthew Riccitello (Decathlon CMA CGM), Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal Quick-Step), Luke Plapp (Jayco AlUla), Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies) and Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious). And what about Daniel Felipe Martinez, runner-up in Paris-Nice?

Author: David Bavin-Hobbs - [email protected]