No Primoz Roglic as Remco Evenepoel’s Clasica San Sebastian squad confirmed for historic record bid
Cycling
Remco Evenepoel will be without Primoz Roglic when he attempts to become the most successful rider in Clasica San Sebastian history on Saturday, with Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe confirming its seven-man squad for the Basque WorldTour Classic.
Roglic had been included on the provisional startlist but is absent from the final selection. Evenepoel will instead be joined by Haimar Etxeberria, Emil Herzog, Daniel Martinez, Gianni Moscon, Giulio Pellizzari and Maxim Van Gils.
The Olympic road race and time trial champion is the clear leader of a powerful climbing unit. Van Gils returns after finishing third in San Sebastian in 2025, while Pellizzari and Martinez give Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe further options across a 221.1-kilometre route containing seven classified climbs and more than 4,150 metres of elevation.
Evenepoel has won the Clasica San Sebastian on all three of his previous appearances, taking victory in 2019, 2022 and 2023. He currently shares the race record with Marino Lejarreta, but would move clear of the Spaniard with a fourth triumph.
Evenepoel carries career-best Tour result into one-day return
Saturday will mark Evenepoel’s first race since he finished second overall at the 2026 Tour de France, securing the best Grand Tour result of his career behind five-time winner Tadej Pogacar.
The Belgian ended the race 6:26 behind the yellow jersey and 3:16 ahead of third-placed Isaac Del Toro, having strengthened considerably during the second half of the Tour.
Evenepoel claimed his first Tour mountain-stage victory at Plateau de Solaison on Stage 15 before winning again in the 26.1-kilometre individual time trial between Evian-les-Bains and Thonon-les-Bains one day later.
He remained among the strongest climbers through the final Alpine weekend, placing sixth on the first finish at Alpe d’Huez and second behind Richard Carapaz when the race returned to the mountain on Stage 20.
Remco Evenepoel and Tadej Pogacar after the 2026 Tour de France
That form now carries into the closing one-day phase of his season, beginning with a race that has already provided three of his 24 professional victories outside stage races.
The route is longer and harder than the one on which Evenepoel last won in 2023. Jaizkibel and Erlaitz feature during the attritional final third before the steep Murgil Tontorra, which averages more than 10% and is crested inside the final run back towards San Sebastian.
Evenepoel has previously won the race through both a long-range solo attack and a two-man sprint, but has never arrived directly from completing the Tour de France. Six days after stepping onto the Paris podium, he will attempt to extend his perfect San Sebastian record and move beyond Lejarreta as the race’s first four-time champion.
Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe for the 2026 Clasica San Sebastian:
| Remco Evenepoel |
| Haimar Etxeberria |
| Emil Herzog |
| Daniel Martinez |
| Gianni Moscon |
| Giulio Pellizzari |
| Maxim Van Gils |
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
- Where Merckx just rode every single race he could and won all the time, Hinault won less often (percentage wise) because he was more judicious in what he raced. His palmares are nuts. He had amazing rivals, one to start his career and another to end it in the grand tours. His classics were solid. What sets him apart from Merckx and Pogačar are that he basically dabbled in the classics while the other two love(d) them. I used to compare Pogačar to Hinault for his grand tour record and occasional classics win, until I realized that the comparison was wrong. Pogačar loves the classics - ah, the memory of his reaction to finishing fourth in a 2 person sprint in Flanders in ‘22: utter domination in any one day race since then, even when he doesn’t win. Hinault lived for the grand tours and I don’t think anyone else will ever reach his record. 10 wins in 13 attempts? Good lord. An amazing rider. Wish there was more footage to watch.RidesHills11-11-2026
- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
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