Preview Gran Premio Castellon 2026 - UAE versus Astana on a hilly classic
CyclingFriday, 23 January 2026 at 17:15
The Gran Premio Castellón is going to be the second Spanish race of the early season and will take place on the 24th of January. It is expected to start at 12:36CET and finish at 16:30CET. We take a look at the profile of the Spanish race.
The Gran Premio Castellón – Ruta de la Cerámica has quickly established itself as one of Spain’s most compelling early-season one-day races. It is raced in the Valencia region, which is used by many riders at this time of year for training and preparation into the 2026 season. From the outset it was placed on the UCI Europe Tour as a 1.1 event, attracting a mix of WorldTeams and ambitious ProTeams eager to test form at the start of the season.
The race’s inaugural edition in 2024 saw Australian Classics specialist Michael Matthews take the first victory, setting a high competitive benchmark and underlining the race’s potential to lure big-name riders despite its young age. Building on that success, the 2025 edition drew an even stronger field, in which UAE Team Emirates - XRG's António Morgado took a strong victory that would kickstart a breakthrough spring.
The race starts off in Castellón de la Plana, immediately with a 2-kilometer long climb that can see some riders test their early-season form and try to make a breakaway. It's a hilly race, one where a sprint should decide it, but late attacks can succeed.
The riders tackle the 14-kilometer long Alto de la Serranatella, but still in the first half of the race. However the Collado de Ayódar ends with only 11 kilometers to go, featuring 5 kilometers at 4.5% but some steeper ramps, where some attacks can then succeed in the downhill and flat finale into Onda.
Read also
Profile: Castellón de la Plana - Onda
Castellón de la Plana - Onda, 171.4 kilometers
Prediction Gran Premio Castellon 2026:
*** António Morgado, Christian Scaroni, Andrea Vendrame
** Diego Ulissi, Benoît Cosnefroy, Lukas Kubis
* Marc Soler, Jon Barrenetxea, Michael Matthews, Clément Champoussin, Davide Ballerini, Alec Segaert, Bryan Coquard, Sandy Dujardin
** Diego Ulissi, Benoît Cosnefroy, Lukas Kubis
* Marc Soler, Jon Barrenetxea, Michael Matthews, Clément Champoussin, Davide Ballerini, Alec Segaert, Bryan Coquard, Sandy Dujardin
Pick: Marc Soler
How: Solo attack over the top of the final categorized climb.
Original: Rúben Silva
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