The Ardennes Classics kick off this Sunday at the Amstel Gold Race, with both the men's and women's pelotons taking on the first in the epic trio of races from Maastricht to Valkenburg in Dutch Limburg
Defending champions Mattias Skjelmose and Mischa Bredewold are both back for another tilt at the respective 257km and 157km courses, with plenty of punchy climbs such as the Bemelerberg and Cauberg set to separate the best from the rest.
Article continues belowLast year's men's race was among the very best of the season, with a thrilling chase ending in a three-up sprint where Skjelmose beat Evenepoel and Tadej Pogačar, who isn't racing in the Netherlands this year.
Elite Men
Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek)
There is no question that Mattias Skjelmose wasn't the rider expected to ride to victory last year, with Thibau Nys starting as Lidl-Trek's chosen leader, and even when the Dane was hanging onto Remco Evenepoel's wheel as he chased down Tadej Pogačar, his first priority was not getting dropped, with third looking like his best possible outcome in the face of two of cycling's superstars. Though this year, having emerged victorious from that memorable three-man sprint 12 months ago, there is no better proof of his capabilities than lining up with the number one on his back.
Now having extended with Lidl-Trek through to 2028, Skjelmose has earned a position as a team leader in the Ardennes, a key goal for the season. His early-season form has been patchy in 2026, and some of the results may not have been all he hoped for with seventh overall at Volta a Catalunya and 14th at Itzulia Basque Country – where he came fifth last year – but he did finish second behind only Paul Seixas on stage 2 at Itzulia, his last race before heading for the Ardennes trio.
Still, with a question mark over leadership removed by the absence of Juan Ayuso due to illness, there will be plenty of reasons for Skjelmose to make the most of the opportunity and plenty of good memories to inspire confidence as he charges to the line.
Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe)
Mattias Skjelmose may have race number 1 on his back after beating Remco Evenepoel at the race last year, but there is no doubt that the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe will line up as the top favourite on Sunday.
Several key rivals who were on the start line last year, such as Tadej Pogačar and Wout van Aert, are not taking on the 60th edition, leaving Evenepoel in a league of his own.
Last year was his debut at the Amstel Gold Race, so after taking third in 2025, he enters this edition with a little more familiarity. He was also arguably the strongest on the road that day, pulling back Pogačar's solo tilt almost entirely on his own, before just running out of steam in the sprint.
The 26-year-old started the season with his new team with three successive wins in Spain before claiming two stages and the overall at Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, and then claiming a time trial win at the UAE Tour at the start of February. While his stage racing hasn't impressed as he and the team would have liked it to have, Evenepoel is in top one-day form.
His last race was his late-announced debut at the Tour of Flanders, where he was third best only to Pogačar and Mathieu van der Poel, but without any cobbles in Dutch Limburg, Evenepoel is on favoured terrain once again this Sunday. Expect him to be firing on all cylinders, and it's a solo victory he'll want.
Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Visma-Lease a Bike may not have ended up with as many leadership options at the race as originally anticipated, but they still have a strong contender in Matteo Jorgensen. He may only have one participation at the event, back in 2024, but has reshaped his goals this season with the Ardennes as the clear target and not the cobbled Classics.
He has already carved out a solid start to the year, taking fourth at Faun Ardèche, second at Faun Drome Classic, eighth at Strade Bianche and second overall at Tirreno Adriatico. If that is what he can deliver while still building toward his key goals, there is plenty of hope for what may unfold now that they are here.
Visma have the inspiration of Wout van Aert winning Paris-Roubaix to use to their advantage, even without the Belgian racing on Sunday, but Jorgenson is backed by the likes of Per Strand Hagenes and Ben Tulett as other attackers. It may end up that Christophe Laporte is the better option to actually challenge for victory, fresh off of finishing ninth in Flanders and fifth in Roubaix, but he will have to survive the hills first for that to materialise.
Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ United)
At 23, Romain Grégoire has already proved that Amstel Gold Race is an event where he can do well, having stepped up to take seventh last year from 12th the season before. And after his flying start to the season, there is reason to hope that he may be able to raise the level even higher in 2026.
A win at the Faun Drome Classic earlier in the season started things on a high, which he followed up with second place at Trofeo Laigueglia, but it was his fourth place at Strade Bianche among a field packed with big-name riders that really spoke to his potential to take it up a notch.
It was his best result so far in a major Classic, and should add confidence as he now heads into a block of one-day races that play to his strengths. A first one-day WorldTour victory seems to be right around the corner for the top French talent Grégoire.
Brady Gilmore (NSN Pro Cycling)
This may seem like an entry that is out of left field, given that Brady Gilmore is a neo-pro taking on not only his very first edition of the Amstel Gold Race, but also his first one-day WorldTour race in Europe. Though his form in races with similar characteristics – those finishing with a punchy circuit – since the 25-year-old joined the top tier has sparked his inclusion as a potential outside chance.
After all, no one was expecting him to fall just shy of the podium for the final two stages of the Tour Down Under – his first ever WorldTour race – or come third at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, with its Classics-inspired course. Then there was also the final stage at the Volta a Catalunya, where he beat Dorian Godon (Ineos Grenadiers) and Evenepoel on the punchy Montjuïc circuit. A result anywhere near the podium would be a phenomenal outcome for the Australian, but given his propensity to surprise so far this year as he launches into the unknown, it may just be one of those seemingly impossible possibilities.
Elite women
Mischa Bredewold (SD Worx-Protime)
Lining up with the number 1 on her back after last year clinching victory solo, Mischa Bredewold has proven she is a rider that shouldn't be looked past despite being surrounded by big names. Once she got into the break of 23 that formed on the third last lap, the SD Worx-Protime rider played her hand to perfection, finally dropping her last rival, Ellen van Dijk, on the final charge up the Cauberg.
This year, there is every sign that she is heading into the race with the form and preparation in place to once again clinch the opportunities that could swing her way. A top ten at the Tour of Flanders is a clear indicator of that.
Particularly after her Amstel Gold Race win, there is no doubt that Bredewold is now looked to as one of the key leaders for her team as the hillier Classics unfold, and the team itself has made clear that Spring one-day races are a significant target. What's more, there will be multiple strong players from the squad, allowing the Dutch rider the freedom to take a chance, which is exactly what she did in 2025.
Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime)
But for celebrating too early, Lorena Wiebes would be returning as a former winner to Amstel Gold. In 2024, the SD Worx-Protime rider was throwing her hands in the air after a powerful performance in the bunch sprint, but in the meantime, Marianne Vos snuck through on the left. The rider, who in recent seasons has increasingly shown that she is a sprinter who can also manage when it's not pancake flat, missed out on her maiden Amstel Gold Race win that day. She missed out on the opportunity to take another shot in 2025, as while she snared a spot in the crucial break of 23, it was down to teammate Bredewold to finish it off that time as the group split. She did, however, win the sprint from the second chase group to take sixth.
This year could provide another opportunity for Wiebes, who will be part of a strong team with Bredewold and another former winner, Anna van der Breggen, on hand to take care of the scenario of an edition that is won by a solo rider or from a small group.
However, if it comes down to a group with Wiebes in it as the head of the race charges toward the finish line, it would be hard to bet against the Dutch champion, although she certainly won't be celebrating early this time. Her form is elite as always, most recently bouncing back from a crash and DNF at the Tour of Flanders to take sixth at Paris-Roubaix.
Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ)
The perennial favourite, with good reason, is Demi Vollering. When the FDJ United-SUEZ lines up, she generally does it as the undisputed leader and with a winning objective. In fact, out of the seven days of racing this season, four have ended with victory, and another was a close second.
Even though Amstel Gold Race has been one of her least successful of the Ardennes Classics in recent seasons, coming 20th in 2025 and 22nd in 2024, Vollering has a victory and two second places to her name, with the win coming in 2023 when she swept up all three in the same season.
What's more, the 29-year-old is fresh off the high of taking her first Tour of Flanders victory with a searing attack on the Oude Kwaremont and then an 18km solo ride to victory. The European champion's effort to hold off nearest chasers, Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech) by 42 seconds, delivered a clear indication of the type of form she is carrying through spring, so this could be the year she once again makes it back to the top of the Amstel Gold Race podium.
Her team are in incredible form as a collective, with Franzi Koch winning Paris-Roubaix and Elise Chabbey winning Strade Bianche too. All three are expected to start on Sunday, so expect only the absolute best from FDJ-United Suez as they look to set up their main leader, Vollering.
Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto)
Another former winner on the start line, Kasia Niewiadoma Phinney also has three other podium finishes at this race and will be one of the riders expected to make it if the race comes down to a solo or small group finish. The Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto rider won in 2019 after attacking on the final ascent of the Cauberg and then holding off the pursuing Annemiek van Vleuten with a determined and focussed effort. With the Cauberg shifted a little closer to the finish this year, just like it was in 2019, this edition could provide an ideal opportunity once again.
Niewiadoma-Phinney will have a strong team by her side to help her conserve energy and provide alternative options to cover attacks or perhaps chase victory, with Neve Bradbury, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig and Soraya Paladin – who has three top-five finishes at the race – all on the provisional startlist for the team.
On top of that, the Polish star has had a powerful start to the season, second in both Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Strade Bianche. A hard-to-watch crash at Milan San Remo then curtailed her run and saw he skip the Flemish cobbled Classics, but with a solo training camp to reset and refresh, Niewiadoma is ready to chase the next step up once again.
Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike)
It hasn't been an easy season for Marianne Vos off the bike, which has meant that we haven't seen her race too often, but the depth of experience combined with the seemingly impossible to dampen winning drive means she is a rider that you can never rule out. Vos is, in fact, the only rider to have won the women's Amstel Gold Race twice, once in 2021 and then again in 2024, when her unrelenting spirit yielded a huge dividend as she pipped Wiebes on the line.
Even though Amstel Gold Race will be just the fourth time Vos has lined up this season its clear that her always strong form isn't lacking, particularly after her runner-up spot at Paris-Roubaix, as you clearly don't end up at the front of a race like that without it. What's more, the emotion that came with the near miss in the velodrome was clear – she wanted that victory and had worked hard along with her teammate Pauline Ferrand-Prévot to try and grasp it. Though it wasn't to be that time, it may perhaps add even that extra bit of depth to the drive to not let any opportunity that may come along slip, and that will next be in play during Sunday's race.
Get unlimited access to our unrivalled 2026 Spring Classics coverage with a Cyclingnews subscription. We'll bring you breaking news, reports, and analysis from some of the biggest races on the calendar, including Amstel Gold Race, La Flèche Wallonne, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Find out more.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
