La Flèche Wallonne 2026 Preview - Who will rise to the top on the Mur de Huy?

First held in 1936, there have been 67 different winners across 89 editions of La Flèche Wallonne, with Alejandro Valverde standing alone atop the record books with five victories, no surprise considering that the race was a match made in heaven for the Spanish great.

La Flèche Wallonne is almost always decided on the steep slopes of the iconic Mur de Huy in an uphill sprint. The last time the race didn’t finish in this manner was back in 2003, when Igor Astarloa soloed to victory. 

Astarloa found himself solo with Aitor Osa heading onto the final ascent of the Mur de Huy, and distanced his Basque compatriot to take the victory, in the same year in which he would become the world champion. 

Last year saw one of the most brutal editions in recent memory, with inclement weather conditions defining the action. 

Though, as usual, the race was decided on the Mur de Huy, where Tadej Pogačar rocketed his way to an emphatic win, for the second time in his career after winning in 2023 also. 

The World Champion finished 10 seconds ahead of Kévin Vauquelin in second, while Tom Pidcock rounded out the podium. 

Such was the emphatic nature of Pogačar’s race-winning sprint that it marked the biggest winning margin at the race since Astarloa’s 2003 success. 

While Pogačar isn't set to defend his title, there is still a strong start list ready to battle it out for the honours in the second of the Ardennes triple.

Key information: 

• Date -  Wednesday, April 22
• Distance - 208.8km
• Start Location - Herstal
• Finish Location - Mur de Huy
• Start time (CET) - 11:50
• Fastest expected finish (CET) - 16:11

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While the finish of La Flèche Wallonne on the Mur de Huy is cemented in stone, the race has seen several locations host across the years, and 2026 is no different, as the city of Herstal, situated along the Meuse river, will have the honour of kicking off the race.

Inside the first 50km of the race, the peloton will tackle two categorised climbs. First is the Côte de Trasenster, which is 3.3km in length with an average gradient of 8.4%. This is followed by the shorter 1.3km Côte des Forges, which averages 7.8%. 

From here, the route continues to traverse across rolling terrain and briefly passes into Luxembourg before things start to heat up. At 116km into the race, the riders will get a look for the first time at the final circuit, which they will tackle three times. 

The all-important circuit features three categorised climbs, the Côte d’Ereffe, Côte de Cherave and Mur de Huy. Typically, the first two climbs on the circuit will serve as a softener for the legs before the Mur de Huy. 

The Côte d’Ereffe is the longest of the three at 2.1km in length and with an average gradient of 5%, and the riders will crest this climb for the final time with 18.4km remaining.

Shorter but steeper is the Côte de Cherave, which is 1.5km long at 8.1%. The riders will reach the top of this climb for the final time with just 5.7km to go. This is one of the last chances to attack for riders who want to avoid a Mur de Huy sprint showdown.

But ultimately, the race is likely to be decided on the slopes of one of the most famous climbs in cycling. The run-in could pose a few problems with a technical downhill leading into the town of Huy, where the road begins to gradually rise. Then, just as the road bends to the right, the climb begins to reveal itself. 

The start of the climb “eases” the riders in before the most vicious gradients, which are situated halfway through the climb, with sections of over 20% on the S-bend. 

The gradients continue to be brutal for the next section of the climb, where the strongest of riders will already be launching their attacks/ long-range sprints inside the final 400 metres.

The road curves to the left, and inside the closing metres, the gradients ease slightly, but it won’t matter too much to the level of pain by this point, as the legs and lungs will be screaming. 

Those who have timed their efforts to perfection can take advantage of the easing gradients in the closing metres to try and make a dramatic steal right at the last. Overall, the Mur de Huy is a brute of a hill, leaving nowhere to hide, and it’s likely to play the defining role in yet another edition of La Flèche Wallonne.

After winning the Amstel Gold Race, Remco Evenepoel of Red Bull–Bora–Hansgrohe confirmed his strong form following his debut at the Tour of Flanders, underlining that he is right on track for the Ardennes classics.

In his post race interview, the Olympic champion indicated that a decision on his participation in La Flèche Wallonne would depend on his recovery, despite being on the provisional start list. He admitted he was keen to race if possible.

However, the team has since confirmed that Evenepoel will not take part, opting instead to prioritise recovery after Amstel.

Given the meteoric rise of Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM), it’s unsurprising that the teenage Frenchman attracts attention at every race he starts. The last time we saw him in action was when he crossed the line on the final stage of Itzulia Basque Country, creating history by becoming the youngest WorldTour stage race winner.

The Ardennes are uncharted territory for Seixas as a professional, but so are most races at the moment, considering the short length of his career to date. But he has passed every test with flying colours so far, and if his victory at Liège-Bastogne-Liège as an under-23 is anything to go by, he should be a force to reckon with.

If Evenepoel starts, it will be the first time the duo face off since the end of 2025 at Il Lombardia, and therefore, the intrigue as to where Seixas ranks against the Olympic champion will be one of the main storylines in the build-up and when the race kicks off.

Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek) pushed Evenepoel at Amstel, missing out on defending his title in a sprint finish. Given Skjelmose’s suitability to the Ardennes, it felt that a win at Flèche at some point in his career would be no surprise, and this looked to be the case when he finished 2nd in 2023. 

However, the Dane has endured bad luck since then, abandoning the last two editions and will look for vengeance this time around. 

The last French winner of Flèche was Julian Alaphilippe in 2021, but there are a number of riders who could break the drought on the Mur de Huy beyond Seixas. 

Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) rode a strong Amstel Gold Race, igniting the action, and although he was distanced by Evenepoel and Skjelmose, he still battled to 4th place. The 23-year-old has been consistent at Flèche in the past, with 7th place in his two appearances, but his Amstel performance indicates that the confidence is there for Grégoire right now. 

Lenny Martinez (Bahrain-Victorious) is another dangerous prospect. The 22-year-old Frenchman has made a scintillating start to the season, winning a stage at Paris-Nice before finishing 2nd overall at the Volta a Catalunya. Martinez made a strong debut last year, finishing 4th, and if he gets to the bottom of the Mur de Huy for the final time, feeling good, anything is possible.

Benoît Cosnefroy (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) is in his element when it comes to the Ardennes. Consistency has plagued the Frenchman at times, but he is in a good moment right now with recent 3rd place finishes at Brabantse Pijl and Amstel. 

With experienced riders such as Pavel Sivakov and Tim Wellens in the squad, UAE and Cosnefroy will be confident in the chances of fighting for a top result.

Continuing with the theme of Frenchmen, Ineos Grenadiers boast a trio in the shape of Kévin Vauquelin, Axel Laurence and Dorian Godon. Vauquelin has finished runner-up in the previous two editions and made the key selection at Amstel before crashing. He finished 50th in the end, but if he has recovered, he could feature for the third successive edition.

There are question marks for Visma | Lease a Bike after Matteo Jorgenson crashed out of Amstel, and Ben Tulett was unable to take part in the start. Jorgenson has unfortunately broken his collarbone and it remains to be seen if Tulett is fit to start. 

In their absence, Jørgen Nordhagen (Visma | Lease a Bike) could step into the spotlight. The 21-year-old Norwegian enjoyed a successful week at O Gran Camiño, finishing 2nd on GC, a race that featured plenty of punchy climbs. He finished 25th last year, but could make a big leap this time around.

Another Norwegian who is more established than Nordhagen is Tobias Halland Johannessen (Uno-X Mobility). The 26-year-old is combative, meaning he is likely to feature if the race breaks up early, but also has the punch required to battle on the Mur de Huy, as illustrated by 6th in his last appearance in 2024. The form is also positive after he secured 3rd in GC on the final stage of Itzulia Basque Country.

Two teams that have a number of options for a strong result that may fly under the radar are Cofidis and XDS Astana.

Ion Izagirre and Alex Aranburu pack a punch for Cofidis, and both enjoyed strong performances at Itzulia Basque Country, while the team also have the experience of former winner Dylan Teuns to lean on. XDS Astana’s Christian Scaroni seems due a big result at the Ardennes, and Clément Champoussin and Diego Ulissi are handy accomplices. 

Other riders to watch out for include former winners Julian Alaphilippe and Marc Hirschi (Tudor), Alex Baudin (EF Education-EasyPost), Quinten Hermans (Pinarello-Q36.5), Valentin Paret-Peintre and Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal Quick-Step), Iván Romeo and Cian Uijtdebroeks (Movistar), Mauro Schmid (Jayco AlUla), and Lennert van Eetvelt (Lotto-Intermarché).