Lloyds Tour of Britain 2026 start list - Pidcock favourite as Merlier and Kooij headline strong sprint field

18 teams will take to the start line for the 2026 Lloyds Tour of Britain, each featuring six riders, resulting in a field of 108 riders. 

There will be five WorldTour teams, including Decathlon CMA CGM, Netcompany- Ineos, NSN, Soudal Quick-Step and UAE Team Emirates-XRG.

They will be joined by four ProTeams: Modern Adventure, Pinarello-Q36.5, Flanders Baloise, and Tudor.

In addition, there will be eight continental-level teams: APS Pro Cycling by Team Cadence Cyclery, Bike Aid, BHS-PL Beton Bornholm, Lucky Sport, St Michel-Preference-Home-Auber93, Storck-MRW Bau, Tarteletto-Isorex, and United Shipping. 

Finally, there will also be a Great Britain squad to round out the start list for the 2026 edition.

Defending champion Romain Grégoire and Groupama-FDJ United will not be on the start line, but former winner Dylan van Baarle (Netcompany-Ineos) is expected to return, alongside Filippo Ganna. Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) will also line up following the MTB World Championships and can be considered as the favourite for his home race.

Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM) has won seven stages across the 2023 and 2025 editions, and the Dutchman is just three away from drawing level with Mark Cavendish's record of 10.

However, he is set to face stiff competition from Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step), who is set to make his debut at the race.

Among the British stars lining up are Ethan Vernon (NSN) and Ben and Connor Swift (Netcompany-Ineos).