2026 Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race Men's preview - Wide-open field for first WorldTour one day race

The 10th edition of the Mapei Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race Men's takes place on Sunday 1, February and marks the first UCI WorldTour one-day race of the season, and only to take place in Australia.

Twelve months ago, Mauro Schmid soloed to the victory after a bold attack in the final 10km of the race, with the Swiss champion narrowly holding off a reduced group charging from behind. Schmid’s victory was the first for the home team Jayco Alula, and the Swiss rider was joined on the podium by two Kiwis, Aaron Gate (XDS-Astana) and Laurence Pithie (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe).

In the nine previous editions, there has been a different winner, which isn't a good omen for former winners Schmid and Pithie, who will both be on the start list this year. However, trends are there to be broken, and the recent Tour Down Under has given a good indication of which riders are in good form ahead of this race.

The race begins and finishes in the city of Geelong, with the route taking the peloton on a big loop before reaching a 21km circuit, which will be tackled 4 times and where the race will be decided.

The most significant feature on the circuit is the Challambra Crescent Climb. At 1km in length, the ascent averages 8.7% with maximum gradients of 11%, serving as a perfect springboard for attacks. There are king of the mountains points at the summit of each ascent, which will also help to incentivise aggressive racing. Stevie Williams (NSN) currently holds the Strava KOM for the climb with a time of 2:44.

Equally, attacks are likely to come over the summit of the climb, with the most skilled descenders likely to put the pressure on during a fast downhill where the peloton will reach speeds of almost 85km/h, according to the race organisers. Although not categorised, there is another short kicker following the descent out of Queens park which is 0.7km in length and averages a more modest 5.2%.

From here, the riders will make their way towards the Geelong waterfront towards the finish on wide roads, which makes it difficult for solo riders to stay clear. Here, the winner of the milestone 10th Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race will be decided.

Only two riders have ever won the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race with a solo effort: Peter Kennaugh in 2016 and the defending champion, Mauro Schmid (Jayco Alula).

Schmid returns to the race in good form, having finished runner-up at the recent Santos Tour Down Under. The Swiss champion won by going solo twelve months ago, and he will likely try to do the same again to prevail if some of the fastest finishers remain in contention.

He will be a marked man, but it’s clear that he currently has the shape required to have a significant impact on this race. Beyond Schmid, there is an open field with different types of riders who could be in the mix for victory.

In the more likely case of a group sprint, Tour Down Under stage winners Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Tobias Lund Andresen (Decathlon CMA CGM) stand out as two of the pre-race favourites due to their abilities to handle the climbs and superior sprint finishes. 

Fellow Tour Down Under stage winners Sam Welsford (Ineos Grenadiers) and Ethan Vernon (NSN) are undoubtedly two of the quickest in the bunch, but are less likely to feature if things become selective on the climbs.

Riders to watch out for who can navigate the climbs but also pack a punch in a finish at the end of a difficult race as shown at the recent Tour Down Under include Andreas Kron (Uno-X Mobility), Finn Fisher-Black, Danny van Poppel and 2024 winner Laurence Pithie (all Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe),  Edoardo Zambanini (Bahrain-Victorious), Brady Gilmore and Corbin Strong (NSN), Andrea Bagioli (Lidl-Trek), Sam Watson (Ineos Grenadiers), Natnael Tesfatsion (Movistar), Andrea Raccagni Noviero (Soudal Quick-Step) Simone Velasco (XDS-Astana) and last year’s runner-up Aaron Gate (XDS-Astana). 

Some of the strongest climbers in the race, who could try to make the race selective, which could put some of the faster finishers into difficulty, include Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), Nicholas Prodhomme (Decathlon CMA CGM), Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain-Victorious), and Javier Romo (Movistar).

Three-time Grand Tour stage winner Simon Clarke (NSN) will also bid farewell to the peloton, with this being the 39-year-old Australian’s final race before hanging up his wheels. Clarke has finished second and third at this race previously.