Tom Pidcock wins the 2026 Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica

Tom Pidcock conquers the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica after beating Carlos Verona and Sepp Kuss at the finish line

The Briton culminated his team’s hard work in a high-level second edition that was decided on the final climb to the Coll de la Botella

Andorra, June 21

Tom Pidcock proclaimed himself the winner of the second edition of the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica after beating Carlos Verona and Sepp Kuss at the finish line. The Briton thus culminated the great work of his team, the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team, on a spectacular day in which the Lidl-Trek rider and race organizer came very close to pulling off a surprise. The race was decided on the final climb to the Coll de la Botella.

The day started with a breakaway of fifteen riders, with Ecuador’s Jefferson Cepeda (EF Education-EasyPost) as one of the most prominent names. The escapees crowned the Port d’Envalira with a one-and-a-half-minute advantage over a peloton that gave the impression of having the situation under control, waiting for the decisive moment.

Before tackling the Coll d’Ordino, Tom Pidcock put his Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team teammates to work. Meanwhile, the breakaway split and four riders—Cepeda (EF), Joan Bou (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Fougner (Unibet Tietema Rockets), and Faura (Burgos Burpellet BH)—detached themselves at the front, coming close to a two-minute advantage. However, on the descent, they regrouped with the rest of the escapees, and the front of the race recovered its original fifteen units, always maintaining a lead close to one and a half minutes. Q36.5, backed by Visma-Lease a Bike and Lidl-Trek, continued to set the pace for the peloton.

On the Coll de Pardines, before the dreaded sterrato section, the breakaway began to lose members, and the joint work of Q36.5 and Visma reduced the lead of Cepeda and company to less than a minute. The gravel zone featured Jefferson Cepeda and Joan Bou as the main protagonists, the survivors of the breakaway, while behind them the peloton continued to bridge the gap, with Sepp Kuss and Tom Pidcock always well-positioned and Derek Gee controlling just behind.

With the race heading towards a resolution on the Coll de la Botella, Lidl-Trek was the first to make a move. With 25 kilometers to go, Julien Bernard attacked from the peloton, caught and passed the two men who had led the race for most of the day, and launched a solo move. Behind him, Visma-Lease a Bike hardened the pace, keeping in mind the options of Sepp Kuss and Ben Tulett.

The final climb to the Coll de la Botella began with Bernard in the lead and a fifty-second advantage over a group of favorites led by Q36.5 and Visma. Among the contenders for victory were Pidcock, Kuss, Derek Gee, Einer Rubio, and Ion Izagirre. Pidcock’s team continued to impose a very high pace until reducing the group to seven riders. Derek Gee lost his chances after suffering an untimely puncture, while Pidcock, Chris Harper, Sepp Kuss, Ben Tulett, Simon Carr, and Carlos Verona—host and race organizer—held on at the front.

Kuss was the first to launch an attack three kilometers from the finish. Harper initially responded, but the American launched another move, and by the final kilometer, Pidcock, Kuss, and Verona were left alone at the front to battle for the victory. The Lidl-Trek rider tried to surprise with an attack, but Pidcock proved to be stronger and raised his arms ahead of Carlos Verona, while Sepp Kuss completed the podium arriving a few seconds later.

In this way, the Briton succeeds Mattias Skjelmose on the honors list of the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica, in a second edition marked by a very high level of participation and the spectacular nature of the Les Pardines gravel section, broadcast on television for the first time. The second edition of the Andorra MoraBanc Clàssica confirmed the consolidation of the event on the international calendar and once again turned Andorran roads into a magnificent stage for top-tier cycling.

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