It’s our Monday cycling news update, in which we suggest that the weekend result that really mattered wasn’t van der Poel’s dominant victory at Omloop or Brennan’s step up at KBK, but Paul Seixas’ eye-popping win at Faun-Ardèche. Plus we crown the first-ever PEZ Weekend Omnium Champ, catch up on the “opening weekend” of women’s racing — and give you fodder for café debates over which sport has the biggest doping problem.
TOP STORY
- Paul Seixas Delivers his Answer to our Reader Poll
RACE NEWS
- Lund Andresen Takes First PEZ “Weekend Omnium”
- Vollering Back to Top Form at Omloop Women’s Race
- Zana the Latest Sardegna Winner Since…Peter Sagan?
- Paris-Nice: Vingegaard’s Unfinished Business
- Wildcards Announced for Strade & MSR Women
- Moritz Kretschy Claims Rwanda Glory
TEAM, RIDER AND CYCLING NEWS
- MPCC: Cycling Doping Cases on the Decline, But Vigilance Remains Key
- ADAC Tour: Sold Out!
Paul Seixas Delivers his Answer to our Reader Poll
The cycling world’s eyes were on Belgium this weekend, for what we PEZzers consider the real start of the real season. You can read about Mathieu van der Poel’s convincing victory at Omloop Nieuwsblad here — and about Matthew Brennan’s also-convincing Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne win here.
But let your eyes drift due south about 700 kilometers, and you’ll spy what may be the news from this weekend that has the most long-term significance — and, perhaps, prescience: 19 year-old Paul Seixas won the Pro Series-level race Faun-Ardèche Classic — no true Classic, this, but a race in which the jeune squared off against legitimate second-tier GC contenders — and in which he did so in Pogi-esque fashion, riding away from Matteo Jorgenson with evident ease.
Faun-Ardèche is no Monument, but the parcours is closer to the Tour’s.
In executing this supposedly unplanned raid, the French…man? not only evoked Pogačar’s style, but his numbers as well: on the day’s main climb, the one where he escaped from Jorgenson, he marked the same time that Tadej achieved in his heroic win in last fall’s European Championships.
Now, it’s only February, and Seixas doesn’t have a season’s worth of fatigue in his legs, but…it’s only February, and Seixas doesn’t have a season’s worth of training in his legs. He’s flying. Meanwhile, he didn’t just climb well: He also railed the descent. It’s not just the engine; it’s the handling too.
Here at PEZ, we’re tempted to re-run last Thursday’s reader poll, the one in which you strongly favored Isaac del Toro as the heir-apparent to Pogačar. You weren’t Seixas believers as of 24 hours ago, in fact ranking a seemingly resurgent Jonas Vingegaard above him, with Ayuso close behind.
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.
We might want to get used to this.
RACE NEWS
Lund Andresen Takes First PEZ “Weekend Omnium”
No, last weekend’s Belgian classics didn’t form a two-day “omnium” — and no, the photo above of Tobias Lund Andresen wasn’t taken during either Omloop or KBK.
That’s because the Decathlon Rider was close to the front throughout the weekend — but never at the front. He finished 6th at Omloop and 7th at its less arrhythmic Sunday little brother, Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne — consistently solid enough to win the first-ever PEZ Weekend Omnium Award.
As mostly middle-aged weekend warriors who punish ourselves on Saturdays and can then barely pedal on Sundays, we wanted to honor the riders who commit to consecutive days of non-stage race competition.
According to our “cobbled” together formula — ahem — the five strongest riders who completed both races were, in order:
- Lund Andresen (Decathlon)
- Tim van Dijke (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
- Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
- Matteo Trentin (Tudor Pro Cycling Team)
- Luke Lamperti (EF Education – Easy Post)
So: Did I just commit to tracking race pairs all season because I wanted to devote a few pixels to Northern California’s hometown hero Luke Lamperti? Maybe.
But I’ll add: were we also to figure the winner of the Faun Classics Omnium, I’m pretty sure the winner would be Matteo Jorgenson — of Northern California.
Vollering Back to Top Form at Omloop Women’s Race
European champion Demi Vollering claimed her maiden victory at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad on Saturday, February 28, out-sprinting Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney from a two-rider escape to take the win in Ninove, in a mirror-image result from the 2024 Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift — a painful loss for Vollering.
The race was shaped by crosswinds and repeated crashes before narrowing to a duel between two of the peloton’s most accomplished one-day riders. Vollering made her first acceleration on the Vesten, the flatter start of the Muur van Geraardsbergen, causing splits in the peloton. Her teammate Franzi Koch set a hard pace, catching a breakaway that had included fellow FDJ United-SUEZ rider Elise Chabbey.
Over the summit, only Niewiadoma could match Vollering’s tempo. On the Bosberg, Vollering again increased the pace in an attempt to distance the Polish rider, but Niewiadoma held contact, and together the pair opened a clear advantage over the fragmented chase.
Inside the final kilometre, Vollering led the sprint. Niewiadoma remained on her wheel but could not come past as the Dutch rider launched her effort with 200 metres to go. Dutch champion Lorena Wiebes was best of the chasing group to secure third place.
“I was really ideally placed at the foot of the Muur and it went like a dream,” said Vollering, the 2023 Tour de France Femmes champion. It’s (very) early, but after early-season racing, Vollering seems poised to return to her past dominance.
Zana the Latest Sardegna Winner Since…Peter Sagan?
Filippo Zana (Soudal Quick-Step) claimed overall victory at the 2026 Giro di Sardegna, wrapping up a dominant five-stage performance across the island that ran from February 25 to March 1.
The race’s pivotal moment came on Stage 4, the queen stage from Arbatax to Nuoro. Zana attacked in the final 10 kilometers after a long day of aggressive work from his Soudal Quick-Step teammates, soloing to the stage win and moving into the overall lead. “Today we did an amazing race,” Zana said at the finish. “The whole team was working so well, so strong.”
The final stage, from Nuoro to Olbia, unfolded largely as expected, with Zana’s leader’s jersey never seriously threatened. Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe Rookies sprinter Davide Donati claimed the stage win, his second of the week, timing his sprint to perfection in the closing kilometer.
Gianmarco Garofoli finished second overall, completing a strong week for Soudal Quick-Step as a team, while Alessandro Verre secured third on the podium.
With the victory, Zana succeeds Peter Sagan, who won the Giro di Sardegna back in 2011 — the last time the race was held before its revival this year. The win also marks his first major title riding for Soudal Quick-Step, and signals that the former Italian national champion is in strong early-season form, and may soon stop being confused with his time-trialing compatriot Filippo Ganna.
Any excuse for a Sagan reference and photo!
Paris-Nice: Vingegaard’s Unfinished Business
The 84th edition of Paris-Nice (March 8–15) just got a lot more interesting. Jonas Vingegaard has confirmed his place at the start in Achères, and with it, the predictions have been torn up and rewritten.
The two-time Tour de France champion has unfinished business with the Race to the Sun. Last year, he wore the leader’s jersey before a painful wrist injury forced him out, handing the win to teammate Matteo Jorgenson. This year, he returns with something to prove.
But the field won’t make it easy. Juan Ayuso arrives fresh off winning the Tour of Algarve, Joao Almeida brings a formidable UAE Emirates XRG squad, and Ineos Grenadiers have assembled arguably the deepest roster in the race with Vauquelin, Onley, Tarling, and Rodriguez. Red Bull–Bora Hansgrohe will lean on Martinez and Vlasov, both proven podium finishers here.
The race will be decided across a team time trial in Nièvre, a summit finish at Auron, and potentially in the crosswinds that could split the peloton on stages designed for sprinters like Girmay and Matthews.
Paris-Nice 2026 has all the ingredients for a classic.
Wildcards Announced for Strade & MSR Women
Organizing company RCS Sport has announced the list of teams set to participate in its spring UCI Women’s World Tour races: Strade Bianche Women Elite Crédit Agricole, and Sanremo Women presented by Crédit Agricole.
STRADE BIANCHE WOMEN ELITE CRÉDIT AGRICOLE (7 March) – 13 UCI WorldTeams, 3 UCI ProTeams, 5 UCI Continental Teams (21 teams of 6 riders each)
13 UCI WorldTeams
AG INSURANCE – SOUDAL TEAM
CANYON//SRAM ZONDACRYPTO
EF EDUCATION – OATLY
FDJ UNITED – SUEZ
FENIX-PREMIER TECH
LIDL – TREK
LIV-ALULA-JAYCO
MOVISTAR TEAM
TEAM PICNIC POSTNL
TEAM SD WORX – PROTIME
TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE
UAE TEAM ADQ
UNO-X MOBILITY
1 UCI ProTeam Qualified by Ranking
VOLKERWESSELS CYCLING TEAM
7 Wild Cards (2 UCI Pro Teams + 5 UCI Continental Teams)
MA PETITE ENTERPRISE
ST MICHEL – PREFERENCE HOME – AUBER 93
AROMITALIA VAIANO
ISOLMANT – PREMAC – VITTORIA
TEAM MENDELSPECK E-WORK
TOP GIRLS FASSA BORTOLO
VINI FANTINI – BEPINK
SANREMO WOMEN PRESENTED BY CRÉDIT AGRICOLE (21 March) – 14 UCI WorldTeams, 5 UCI ProTeams, 5 UCI Continental Teams (24 teams of 6 riders each)
14 UCI WorldTeams
AG INSURANCE – SOUDAL TEAM
CANYON//SRAM ZONDACRYPTO
EF EDUCATION – OATLY
FDJ UNITED – SUEZ
FENIX-PREMIER TECH
HUMAN POWERED HEALTH
LIDL – TREK
LIV-ALULA-JAYCO
MOVISTAR TEAM
TEAM PICNIC POSTNL
TEAM SD WORX – PROTIME
TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE
UAE TEAM ADQ
UNO-X MOBILITY
2 UCI ProTeams Qualified by Ranking
LABORAL KUTXA – FUNDACION EUSKADI
VOLKERWESSELS CYCLING TEAM
8 Wild Cards (3 UCI Pro Teams + 5 UCI Continental Teams)
COFIDIS WOMEN TEAM
MAYENNE MONBANA MY PIE
ST MICHEL – PREFERENCE HOME – AUBER 93
AROMITALIA VAIANO
ISOLMANT – PREMAC – VITTORIA
TEAM MENDELSPECK E-WORK
TOP GIRLS FASSA BORTOLO
VINI FANTINI – BEPINK
Moritz Kretschy Claims Rwanda Glory
The Tour du Rwanda’s organizers have declared their vision that the African stage race will one day be part of the WorldTour. Considering cycling’s bias towards tradition (and Europe — ed.), they could select a better window than the one that coincides with the informal Opening Weekend of the cycling season, facing off against two Belgian Classics.
Maybe one day, though, the riders will push for Rwanda’s WT inclusion, having crashed often enough on rain-slicked cobbles — and finished often enough in front of thin crowds, by my observation. Last week Germany’s Moritz Kretschy was crowned champion of the 2026 Tour du Rwanda beneath palm trees, in warm but manageable temps, and in front of crowds that would make Dutch Corner denizens blush for their density.
The race through the Land of a Thousand Hills unfolded with several lead changes and dramatic moments. Israeli rider Itamar Einhorn took the opening stage from Rukomo to Rwamagana, before Pau Martí claimed Stage 2 to take over the general classification lead. Stage 3 saw Jurgen Zomermaand win with a daring late downhill attack, taking both the stage and the overall lead.
However, Zomermaand’s race unraveled on Stage 4, when the Dutch leader abandoned, handing the yellow jersey to Kretschy, who had finished second on the stage behind Belgian breakaway winner Mathijs De Clercq of the Soudal-QuickStep Development Team.
Kretschy defended his lead tenaciously through the demanding final stages in Rwanda’s mountainous northwest. Stage 7, from Musanze to Kigali, was won by Henrique Bravo, with Henok Mulubrhan in third— the Eritrean proving one of the race’s standout performers. Mulubrhan then took the final stage victory on the Kigali circuit, but it wasn’t enough to unseat Kretschy, who held firm to take a memorable overall victory.
Kretschy rides for NSN’s development team. Young, not Belgian or Dutch, a career-shaping experience in Africa…maybe he’ll become an evangelist for the Tour du Rwanda.
TEAM, RIDER AND CYCLING NEWS
We greatly enjoyed this brief video about Kasper Asgreen and his decision not to live and train in southern Europe, but to remain in his Danish hometown of Kolding, and thought we’d share it with you here.
MPCC: Cycling Doping Cases on the Decline, But Vigilance Remains Key
Professional cycling recorded just 20 doping cases in 2025, continuing a downward trend from 29 cases in 2022, according to the Mouvement Pour Un Cyclisme Crédible. The sport ranked tenth among disciplines affected by doping — well behind athletics (163 cases), weightlifting (63), and tennis (46).
Despite this progress, the MPCC urges caution. A World Tour rider was suspended for the first time in two years, caught by the biological passport. The organization also highlights concerns around “grey area” medical practices, such as the widespread use of painkillers, which may endanger riders’ health.
Nine of the 20 cases occurred at the Continental level, with dozens more recorded among amateurs — including 25 riders suspended in Colombia alone. The MPCC stresses that clean cycling must start at the grassroots level, calling on all stakeholders, from riders to race organizers, to unite in the ongoing fight against doping.
ADAC Tour: Sold Out!
Nearly ten weeks before the start (on May 1st), the ADAC Tour is already fully booked, with 12,000 participants expected on the starting line, compared with 10,000 in 2025. A record.
The amateur race, held as part of Eschborn–Frankfurt, thus continues its growth trajectory and therefore further strengthens its position as one of Germany’s most popular amateur cycling events.
On May 1st, 12,000 participants will take to the start line on three varied routes through the Taunus region. Once again, the longest distance has proven particularly popular: the majority of riders have opted for the demanding 97-kilometre “Taunus Classic,” featuring the iconic climbs of Feldberg and Mammolshainer Stich.
Following this year’s sell-out, attention is already turning to the next edition. Those wishing to take part on May 1, 2027, can now pre-register on time to.
For everyone who wants to ride on the same routes as the pros:
- Paris-Nice Challenge (France – 14 March 2026): more information here.
- Tro Bro Leon Challenge (France – 9 May 2026): more information here.
- Liège-Bastogne-Liège Challenge (Belgium – 25 April 2026): more information here.
- L’Étape du Tour de France Femmes (France – 6 August 2026): more information here.
- ADAC Cyclassics (Germany – 16 August 2026): more information here.
- ADAC Cycling Tour (Germany – 23 August 2026): more information here.
- Roc d’Azur (France – From 7 to 11 October 2026): more information here.
- L’Etape Series by Tour de France: more information here.
Winter temps got you down? Check out this video review of Hotel Dory, a premier bike hotels located in Riccione on the Adriatic Coast, and start dreaming of a warm cycling vacation in Italy!
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