In France, it was a newcomer to the UCI Gravel World Series that delivered one of the last qualifying rounds on Saturday, as Romain Bardet (Picnic-PostNL) and Axelle Dubau-Prévôt (Numéro 31 par Café du Cycliste) charged across the line in Les Angles to capture clear-cut victories at 66 Degrés Sud - Pyrénées Catalanes Gravel Tour.
Dubau-Prévôt delivered a time of 4:14:07 on the 110km course in the Pyrénées with over 2,000 metres of climbing, finishing more than four minutes ahead of her nearest rival in the elite women's category, Houffa Gravel winner Nicole Frain (Ridley Racing). Karolina Migoń (PAS Racing) was less than four minutes further back in third.
Bardet won his second UCI gravel series event, the retired WorldTour racer taking victory at Monsterrando in Italy – covering the course in 3:34:34. He was nearly five minutes faster than runner-up Hugo Drechou (Numéro 31 par Café du Cycliste) while Adne Koster (Giant Liv Benelux Offroad) was 51 seconds further back. Petr Vakoc (Canyon) managed to fight his way back to fourth after an ill-timed puncture.
66 Degrés Sud - Pyrénées Catalanes Gravel Tour is among the final group of UCI Gravel World Series qualifiers for the World Championships in Bolero from October 11-12. Dubau-Prévôt and Dorian Gordon won the the first French series race of the season in June, Wish One Millau Grands Causses.
Position | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
1 | Axelle Dubau-Prévôt | 4:14:07 |
2 | Nicole Frain | +4:30 |
3 | Karolina Migoń | +8::02 |
4 | Marta Torà Milà | +8:04 |
5 | Jade Treffeisen | +15:31 |
Position | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
1 | Romain Bardet | 3:34:34 |
2 | Hugo Drechou | +4:34 |
3 | Adne Koster | +5:25 |
4 | Petr Vakoc | +5:36 |
5 | Nils Brun | +5:49 |
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.
-
Lotto-Intermarché 'dishonest' with riders over future amid long-running merger process
'The teams can decide whether or not to keep a rider, but the rider himself can't do anything to leave' says CPA President Adam Hansen -
I spent three years tracking cycling's team rankings for WorldTour promotion/relegation, and the data is fascinating
A deep dive into the data behind the performances of the 2026 WorldTour candidates -
Merida bucks the wide gravel tyre trend with its new Mission race bike
Merida has actually reduced tyre clearance on the new Mission compared to its Silex gravel bike -
Merida Mission gravel bike first ride review: A stock wheel and tyre combo that limits the bike more than it aids it
The Mission is a great-looking bike that's brilliant fun to ride, but it's not a bike for all terrains
