Pogacar, Van der Poel and Vollering: The 10 longest solo victories of 2026

Few would have expected the Skoda Tour de Luxembourg to make the headlines this year for hosting a historic performance, but Mathieu van der Poel had other ideas.

The Dutchman returned to the Luxembourg stage race as his final preparation for the World Championships, repeating his 2024 build-up. Just like two years prior, Van der Poel made an immediate impression by winning the opening stage. 

The Alpecin-Premier Tech star would eventually slip out of contention, but he saved his best performance for last with a solo effort of epic proportions.

On the fifth and final stage, Van der Poel was on the move shortly from the flag drop and quickly built a solo advantage as riders tried to bridge across. 

However, Van der Poel was in a class of his own, and nobody could close the gap. His early move ultimately proved to be decisive as the Dutchman held off the peloton to win with a staggering 174km solo effort. 

Not only did it mark the biggest solo victory of Van der Poel’s illustrious career, but it also surpassed David McKenzie’s Giro d’Italia stage victory in 2000 to become the longest solo victory in the men’s professional peloton in the 21st century.

One week later, Van der Poel picked up a bronze medal in the Worlds road race in Montréal, just as he had done in Zürich two years earlier.

The biggest solo victory in the women’s professional peloton in 2026 came courtesy of Norwegian champion Sigrid Ytterhus Haugset at the Tour de France Femmes. 

In just her third race day wearing the Norwegian champion’s jersey, Haugset produced a solo performance for the ages on stage 3.

Haugset first demonstrated her strength by bridging across to the leading group during a crucial moment in the breakaway formation, making the move entirely on her own.

After the group was reeled in, Haugset played another card, launching an attack that initially drew no response from those behind.

Lotte Kopecky, who was also in the initial breakaway group, eventually set off in pursuit of the Norwegian, but Haugset was not to be caught. After 88 km solo at the head of the race, Haugset crossed the finish line in emphatic fashion.

With plenty of time to celebrate, Haugset finished 1:24 ahead of Kopecky, while Marianne Vos led home the peloton at 2:48, handing the Norwegian champion the yellow jersey for stage 4’s individual time trial.

Spoiler alert: Tadej Pogačar features on this list four times, which isn’t much of a surprise. 

The Slovenian’s longest solo came in his season opener at Strade Bianche in March. Having won in 2022, 2024 and 2025, the then World Champion had already made the white roads of Tuscany his own. 

The 2026 edition offered Pogačar another opportunity to add to his Strade Bianche tally, but also the chance to remind the peloton that he was showing no signs of slowing down after reaching new heights of dominance in 2024 and 2025.

He did exactly that, as UAE Team Emirates-XRG stretched out the peloton on the Monte Sante Marie section before Pogačar launched his trademark move. 

However, Pogačar wasn’t immediately without peer, as Paul Seixas, on debut, briefly followed the wheel of the world champion before having to relent. 

While it was admirable to see Seixas last as long as he did, Pogačar never looked fazed with the French teen on his wheel. 

Once he had dispatched Seixas with 79km to go, Pogačar did not look back as he soloed to a record-breaking fourth title, 1:00 ahead of the French prodigy.

After a clinical spring that included three Monument victories and his success at Strade Bianche, Tadej Pogačar’s first stage race of the season came in April at the Tour de Romandie.

Storming to four stage wins and the GC in his first appearance at the race, Pogačar’s next outing would be another Swiss stage race debut.

The Tour de Suisse in June served as Pogačar’s final preparation race before his bid for a fifth Tour de France title in July, and he instantly served up a demonstration.

In the opening stage around Sondrio, Pogačar put his UAE teammates to work inside the final 75km ahead of the bonus sprint in Pedemonte. 

The pace split the peloton, and after he picked up two bonus seconds, Pogačar accelerated from the wheel of Brandon McNulty to go clear from the bunch.

Just over 2km later, Pogačar had bridged across to early escapee Fredrik Dversnes, and he quickly dispatched the Norwegian without getting out of the saddle.

Surrounded by a stunning backdrop, Pogačar completed the final near 69.3km alone, winning by 2:22 over Richard Carapaz, while Andrea Bagioli was the only other rider within four minutes of the stage winner. 

Pogačar had all but wrapped up the Tour de Suisse GC before the race had barely started, and sent an ominous warning to his rivals about what to expect at the main event in July.

After making his long-awaited return to the Vuelta a España seven years after his debut in 2019, Tadej Pogačar went quickly about his business, winning the opening time trial in Monaco.

Stage 4 presented a blockbuster Andorran stage featuring over 3,000m of elevation gain in just over 100km.

After his exploits at the Tour, Pogačar had the opportunity to steal an early march, and he duly delivered. 

The race leader powered clear on the Coll d’Ordino with 50.3km to go and quickly opened a significant advantage over the rest of the GC contenders, who eventually formed a larger chase group. 

Pogačar, operating in a sphere of his own, continued to extend his advantage and celebrated in Andorra la Vella, 2:39 ahead of a six-man group.

This left Pogačar with a seemingly insurmountable lead of 3:21 over Primož Roglič after just two completed road stages and a time trial. Ill fortune ended Pogačar’s hope of Vuelta glory after his season-ending crash on stage 8.

Having already spent a stage in yellow and with a stage win to boot, Tadej Pogačar stormed back into the race lead at the Tour de France on stage 6 with a devastating statement victory in the Pyrenees.

UAE Team Emirates-XRG dismantled the peloton on the approach to the Col du Tourmalet, with teammate Isaac del Toro setting a fierce tempo before Pogačar launched his decisive attack with 42.6km remaining.

Jonas Vingegaard initially managed to keep the Slovenian within touching distance, but Pogačar continued to extend his advantage, reaching the summit 30 seconds clear of his Danish rival.

With nobody able to mount a serious challenge, Pogačar powered through the final 38km alone to take victory in Gavarnie-Gèdre by a commanding 2:38 over Vingegaard, with Del Toro leading home the next group.

The victory also saw Pogačar reclaim the yellow jersey from Torstein Træen, establishing a 2:42 advantage over Vingegaard in the general classification and sending another ominous warning to his rivals in his quest for a fifth Tour title.

Mathieu van der Poel features on this list for the second occasion, though what makes this effort stand out is that, for a brief moment, it looked as though victory might slip through his fingers.

After winning the E3 Saxo Classic in 2024 and 2025 with dominant solo victories, Van der Poel looked to be resuming business as usual in 2026 when he attacked from the peloton on the Taaienberg with 70km to no response. 

The Dutchman then bridged his way across to the breakaway at the head of the race, before dropping another hammer with 42.2km on the Paterberg to lead solo. 

Quickly building an advantage of over a minute over the chasing bunch, it seemed as though the flying Dutchman was well on track for a routine victory in Harelbeke. 

A strong chase group formed behind, including Jonas Abrahamsen, Stan Dewulf, Per Strand Hagenes and Florian Vermeersch, that looked to keep the Dutchman honest. 

However, the dynamics changed significantly when the group continuously reduced their deficit to Van der Poel to the point where they had the Dutchman in their sights just before the flamme rouge. 

Van der Poel refused to simply sit up, continuing to press on with the remaining power in his legs and forcing the chasers to make the final effort to bridge across to his back wheel.

The chasers didn’t oblige, and a moment of hesitation and lack of willingness to be the one to close the final metres saw the group sit up. 

The victory sailed into the distance with Van der Poel completing his E3 hat-trick with what was likely the hardest win of the trio.

After announcing himself amongst the professionals in 2025, Paul Seixas’ star has risen exponentially this season, culminating in his first Monument victory at Il Lombardia in October. 

However, flashback to his season opener in February at the Volta ao Algarve, and Seixas had yet to taste victory as a professional.

He didn’t have to wait long, winning stage 2 of the Portuguese stage race before heading to the Faun-Ardèche Classic at the end of the month. 

Seixas split the race on the Mur de Royes with around 45km remaining, as the biggest stars in the race found themselves one by one, unable to stick to the teenager's back wheel. 

Matteo Jorgenson was able to withstand the punishing pace the longest, but the writing was on the wall when Seixas took a swig from his bidon with seemingly ease while continuing to press on the pedals. 

The American was distanced a short while after as Seixas soloed to an emphatic 41.7km solo victory, where he also showcased his descending prowess.

Paula Blasi established herself as one of the leading riders in the peloton this season, with standout victories at the Amstel Gold Race and the Vuelta. 

However, the Spanish rider’s most emphatic victory of the campaign came after Blasi had already cemented her talent with those previous victories.

At the CIC-Tour Féminin de Pyrénées in June, Blasi blasted clear from the competition on the slopes of the mythical Col du Tourmalet with 40km remaining on the second stage. 

After building a strong lead on the climb, Blasi held off a chasing group of six to take the stage victory and race leadership, which she would successfully defend on the third and final stage.

2026 will be remembered by many as the year when Demi Vollering produced one of the most dominant campaigns of recent times with 16 victories, including the Tour of Flanders and the Triple Crown of the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and World Championships.

The most emphatic of the sixteen victories came at the end of April in the Ardennes at Liège-Bastogne-Liège when Vollering, sporting the European champion jersey, was peerless after detonating an explosive attack on the savage slopes of the Côte de la Redoute. 

Vollering’s move was premeditated, with her FDJ United-Suez teammates ramping up the pace on the lower slopes in an uphill lead-out that allowed their team leader to slingshot from with still 34km to go. 

With plenty of climbing remaining on the menu, Vollering continued to exert her authority on the rest of the peloton, continuing to open the gap on the chasers to complete a hat-trick of victories at La Doyenne and round out a stunning spring collection of victories. 

Vollering’s compatriot won the sprint for second place from the chasing trio, ahead of Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney and Anna van der Breggen, 1:29 behind the solo winner, marking the biggest winning margin since Annemiek van Vleuten’s victory in 2019.