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Friday, October 9, 2026
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Upcoming racing:
- Oct 10: Il Lombardia
- Oct 11: Paris-Tours
- Oct 18: Chrono des Nations
Latest completed racing:
- Oct 8: Gran Piemonte
- Oct 3 - 7: Elite European Road Championships
- Oct 6: Tre Valli Varesine
- Oct 6: Binche-Chimay-Binche
- Oct 5: Coppa Bernocchi
- Sept 27 - Oct 4: Le Tour de Langkawi
- Oct 4: Coppa Agostoni
- Oct 3: Giro dell'Emilia
- Oct 3: Sparkassen Münsterland Giro
- September 20 - 27: World Road Championships
We posted the race organizer's report with the results.
Here's the report from winner Dorian Godon's Team Netcompany-INEOS:
Dorian Godon produced a powerful sprint to claim victory at Gran Piemonte following a superb display of teamwork from Netcompany INEOS.
The Frenchman secured his seventh victory of 2026 in style as the Italian one-day event came back together in the closing kilometres.
Dorian Godon wins the 2026 Gran Piemonte. Sirotti photo
Godon regained contact following the late La Morra climb and was piloted to the head of the race for the run-in. Axel Laurance played a superb lead-out role, dropping his compatriot into a perfect position on the tricky run into Bra.
Godon launched his sprint to overhaul Anthon Charmig (Uno-X Mobility) and Alberto Bettiol (XDS Astana) at the line and claim one of the biggest victories of his career.
Netcompany INEOS worked hard to retain a foothold at the head of the peloton late on, with pacing work from Tobias Foss and Bob Jungels on the climb, before Kim Heiduk helped contribute to chasing down lead duo Isaac Del Toro (UAE Emirates - XRG) and Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull - Bora - Hansgrohe). In the end the race came back together with 1.4km to go, setting the scene for a superb sprint success.
Dorian Godon: "I didn't have my best feeling today but the team did an amazing job for me to put me in a good position. And then the last 2km I just followed Axel (Laurance) and he went super smooth. I just gave everything after the turn - I was in third position and then I went directly [to the front]. I still had to recover as it was a super hard finish, but I gave everything and I'm so happy.
"[This year] the team has given 100% for me. I've had a lot more chances than the other years. When I have my chance, I think I'm good."
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Here's the Gran Piemonte report from Team Picnic-PostNL:
Our first of two Italian one-day races this week, Gran Piemonte, delivered an aggressive finale after a relatively controlled opening. A breakaway of 10 riders formed early and built a maximum advantage of just over two minutes, with the peloton keeping the escapees under control throughout. The final breakaway riders were caught with 39 kilometers to go.
Team Picnic-PostNL is presented before the race start. Sirotti photo
On the La Morra climb, 20 kilometers from the finish, Gijs Leemreize pushed the pace, before Del Toro attacked and was followed by Fisher-Black. Del Toro dropped his companion just before the summit, but Fisher-Black rejoined him on the descent. The duo was caught with 1.5 kilometers remaining, setting up an uphill sprint to the finish. A crash in the final corner disrupted the bunch, with Warren Barguil held up but still crossing the line as Team Picnic PostNL’s first finisher in 19th.
And here's the Gran Piemonte report from Team Groupama-FDJ United:
Despite a few attacks and a morning breakaway that included Brieuc Rolland until 45 kilometres from the finish, the Gran Piemonte ended in a reduced bunch sprint this Thursday. French champion Romain Grégoire tried to find his way through the sprint, but was blocked in particular by a crash 300 metres from the line and could do no better than 16th at the finish. The Frenchman will now head to Paris-Tours, while the rest of the team will turn their attention to Il Lombardia.
Another day, and another race in Italy! Following the Giro dell’Emilia, the Coppa Bernocchi and the Tre Valli Varesine in recent days, the Groupama-FDJ United cycling team lined up for the start of the Gran Piemonte this Thursday, two days before the final Monument of the season. A much less demanding menu was on offer between Asti and Bra, however, with 2,500 metres of elevation gain spread over 185 kilometres. There were indeed several climbs along the route, but none featured particularly brutal gradients.
2026 Gran Piemonte: The peloton tackles a rise close to the finish. Sirotti photo
That did not stop Brieuc Rolland from anticipating the action by joining a ten-man breakaway from the start. “The aim was to have someone up the road,” explained Benoît Vaugrenard. “We noticed recently that the peloton sometimes struggled to bring back breakaways. There was also a risk of rain towards the finish, so we had decided that we would get into the break if a good group of seven to ten riders formed. Brieuc was designated for this role, and he fulfilled it well. Unfortunately, they never gained much of an advantage because UAE Team Emirates-XRG set a very high pace behind.”
As proof of it, the breakaway’s advantage was only one minute when the first of the two climbs to La Morra (7 km at 4%) started, 55 kilometres from the finish. At the summit, Brieuc Rolland was part of a trio of survivors, but they were about to be caught by the bunch. “UAE accelerated on the first ascent to reduce the peloton and make the race harder, and then we passed the finish line with one 35-kilometre lap remaining,” Benoît continued. “We quickly realized that it would probably come down to a sprint.” The French champion was focused solely on that objective on Thursday. “We had told Romain not to make any moves and to wait for the finish because we know he hasn’t been feeling his best recently,” Benoît explained. “The aim was to assess his situation as the race progressed. The others, on the other hand, had free rein before the finish.” Lorenzo Germani tried to take advantage of this on the final ascent of La Morra, but one kilometre after his move, Isaac Del Toro launched a devastating counter-attack that only Finn Fischer-Black was able to follow.
The two riders built a 30-second gap over a regrouped, yet slightly reduced peloton, where the chase was driven at full speed over the final five flat kilometres leading to the finish. The combined efforts of several teams paid off, and the Mexican rider was caught on the opening slopes of the uphill finish (1.3 km at 4%, followed by a final 400 metres of flat). Romain Grégoire then tried to move up on the left-hand side of the road, but was still around 15th position after passing the flamme rouge.
“We knew that positioning was crucial, and we had studied the finish carefully,” Benoît added. “At 500 metres, the sprint was almost decided. There was a lot of fighting for position, and Romain said he hesitated a little at 800 metres. He didn’t go for it, and as a result he came through the final corner in the second row.” Like several other riders, the French puncheur was then slowed down by a crash as Dorian Godon sprinted to victory. “Romain doesn’t have his very best legs at the moment, but without the crash, he probably would have been closer to the top 10,” Benoît concluded. The Groupama-FDJ United rider ultimately finished 16th and will now return to France for Paris-Tours on Sunday.
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Here’s the team’s update:
Tim Merlier and Jasper Stuyven headline our squad for Sunday’s appointment, which will close out the European road season.
It’s one of the oldest and most prestigious one-day races in the world, an event created in the same year as Paris-Roubaix, and our team will be again at the start of it. Paris-Tours schedules its 120th edition on Sunday, one held over a 216.2km route starting in Chartres and featuring 10.5 kilometers of vineyard tracks, with all ten sectors concentrated within the final 70 kilometers.
The gravel together with the short and explosive hills peppering the course - where positioning and tactics will play a big role - are sure to encourage attacks and make an important selection before the finish on the Boulevard Beranger, where the winner of what was once known as the sprinters’ classic will be crowned.
Tim Merlier (shown after winning stage 8 of the 2026 Tour de France) is scheduled to start Paris-Tours. Sirotti photo
"Our team is the only one to have won Paris-Tours in three consecutive years this century, and will go with a lot of motivation to the start of the season’s last major one-day race. Grand Prix Cerami winner Cériel Desal, Yves Lampaert, this year’s Tour de France best sprinter Tim Merlier, Pepijn Reinderink, Jasper Stuyven - a top-three finisher here five years ago - Viktor Soenens and Bert Van Lerberghe are the seven Soudal Quick-Step riders who’ll be in action at the French Classic," explained sports director Tom Steels ahead of the race which for the ninth consecutive year takes place on the famous vineyard paths.
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Here’s the team’s news:
Headlined by world champion Brandon McNulty and the Mexican champion Isaac del Toro, UAE Team Emirates-XRG is pleased to present its seven-man lineup for Il Lombardia.
Raced on Saturday, 10 October, Il Lombardia is the final Monument of the season, known as one of cycling’s most prestigious one-day races. Won by the Emirati squad for the last five seasons in a row, the team will return without the injured defending champion Tadej Pogačar, but with plenty of ambition to defend its crown.
Brandon McNulty (shown just after finishing the 2026 Gran Piemonte) will race Il lombardia. Sirotti photo
Leading the line will be Del Toro, fifth in last year’s edition, and McNulty, recently crowned the UCI World Road Race Champion in Montréal. Behind the pair will be an all-star roster of climbers, more than capable of mastering the tough ascents that link Bergamo to Como in the 238.9km-long race.
Adam Yates, a podium finisher here in 2021, will be on the start line for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, as will his teammates Jan Christen, Felix Grossschartner, Domen Novak, and Pavel Sivakov.
From the team car, Sports Directors Andrej Hauptman and Marco Marzano will offer their guidance.
The Emirati team first won Il Lombardia in 2021, with Pogačar going on to win five editions in a row, matching the all-time record of five victories set by the legendary Italian rider, Fausto Coppi. Pogačar’s recent track record will give all of his teammates plenty of motivation heading into the last of cycling’s five great Monuments.
Del Toro: “We go into Lombardia as defending champions and we’ll have a clear goal to keep that title. The team is very strong and we have many options for victory.
“Obviously Brandon is flying in the rainbows at the moment and personally I’m in good form also. The key will be to have numbers as deep into the race as possible and then play our cards on the road.
“We have a good feeling in the group and understand each other well, so it puts us in a strong position from the start. The rest will depend on the rivals.”
Known as the Classica delle Foglie Morte, or the Race of the Falling Leaves, Il Lombardia takes place in autumn each year, with this season’s instalment marking the 120th edition. Following on from Milano-Sanremo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the race is one of the major one-day races known as a Monument.
As such, the race has an illustrious list of winners, and regularly draws thousands of spectators to the roadside in the Lombardy region of Italy. We can expect more of the same on Saturday afternoon, with this year’s route taking the peloton from Bergamo to Como, over some of the area’s most demanding climbs.
Naturally, a big feature of the day will be the ascent to Madonna del Ghisallo. The iconic sanctuary sits on a hilltop peering out above Lake Como, and was devoted to cyclists by Pope Pius XII in 1949. A pilgrimage spot for the lycra-clad fraternity, the Madonna del Ghisallo will be a highlight of Saturday’s route, but is far from the final challenge.
Indeed, the 120th Il Lombardia totals a whopping 4,518m of climbing, including the viciously steep Civiglio climb. Standing at 9% for 4km, Civiglio is the penultimate climb of the day, and the tricky, winding descent that follows has previously been used for race-winning attacks by Vincenzo Nibali in both 2015 and 2017.
Once Civiglio and its demanding descent are dealt with, the riders will make a second and final climb to San Fermo della Battaglia. This climb stretches out for 2.9km at 6.6% and will top out with a little under 5km to ride.
From here, the wannabe winners of Il Lombardia will drop down to the banks of Lake Como to the finish line. It is another classic route for the race formerly known as the Giro di Lombardia, and Pogačar’s absence will ensure that a new champion is crowned in Como on Saturday afternoon.
Away from Europe, UAE Team Emirates-XRG will make its debut on Japanese soil this week, with a six-man squad taking to the country’s third-largest island for the Tour de Kyushu.
There, the fourth edition of the three-day race awaits, as well as a fast-paced criterium event on the evening of Friday, 9 October. This criterium takes the form of a 45km-long circuit race in Sasebo City, before stages 1, 2 and 3 of the Tour de Kyushu are held between Saturday, 10 October and Monday, 12 October.
Held exclusively on Japan’s southwesternmost island of Kyushu, the three-day stage race was formed as a testament to the island’s resilience and recovery from devastating natural disasters. The most recent of which was the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake, which brought severe flooding to the north of the island.
Kyushu, after all, is known for its volcanic landscapes and, in particular, Mt. Aso, which is one of the world’s largest active calderas. It is through the hot spring towns and along the tropical coastlines that the fourth edition of the Tour de Kyushu will take place.
UAE Team Emirates-XRG is to make its debut in the race with a squad that combines WorldTour experience and youthful exuberance from the team’s Gen Z ranks.
Bringing the experience will be Ivo Oliveira, Kevin Vermaerke and first-year pro Adrià Pericas, whilst Marcos Freire, Enea Sambinello and Davide Stella complete the squad from the team’s under-23 contingent.
Sport Director Manuele Mori will guide the team on the roads of Kyushu.
Stage starts are to be held in Saga, Oita and Miyazaki, with stage finishes to be placed in Fukuoka, Kumamoto, and Miyazaki, respectively.
Stage 2 between Oita and Kumamoto is set to be the toughest day of racing, with 2,368m of climbing draped across just 127.8km. It promises an exciting debut for the Emirati squad in Japan, with it all kicking off on Friday with the Sasebo City criterium.