Preview Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne 2026 - Massive sprinter and classics specialist battle on Opening Weekend
Cycling
On the 1st of March the peloton takes on Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne. Whilst not part of the World Tour, the cobbled classic - the second of the weekend, following Omloop het Nieuwsblad - is every year one of the most exciting racs of the year, where classics specialists and sprinters come together in a difficult and very tactical race. We preview the race ahead.
First raced back in 1946, the Belgian classic features a tremendous amount of history, and is heavily corelated with Omloop het Nieuwsblad. Currently, the two form the so-called 'Opening Weekend'; which are the two cobbled classics that officially open up the spring calndar. Names such as Patrick Lefevere, Johan Museeuw and Edwig van Hooydonck can be found in the race's palmarès from many decades ago; whilst more recently modern legends such as Tom Boonen, Mark Cavendish and Peter Sagan have all added their name to the list.
Since 2020, we've had an attack decide the race on three occasions; and a bunch sprint decide the race on three occasions. Kasper Asgreen, Mads Pedersen, Fabio Jakobsen, Tiesj Benoot, Wout van Aert and most recently Jasper Philipsen are all winners here. Last year, Philipsen won the race in a reduced peloton sprint, beating Olav Kooij to the line.
Read also
Profile: Kortrijk - Kuurne
Kortrijk - Kuurne, 193.5 kilometers
The Belgian race features 1800 meters of climbing in 193 kilometers, mostly in the first two thirds. It is always an extremely interesting race, where attacks come aplenty from the classics specialists over the many climbs and cobbled sectors that the race has to offer.
But the final 60 kilometers present very little difficulties, which creates an interesting dynamic between the attackers and the teams of the sprinters that wish to bring things back. Every year drama is promised and delivered into the streets of Kuurne.
Prediction Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne 2026:
*** Tobias Lund Andresen, Jordi Meeus, Jonathan Milan, Paul Magnier
** Jasper Philipsen, Arnaud de Lie, Matthew Brennan, Christophe Laporte
* Laurence Pithie, Matteo Trentin, Jonas Abrahamsen, Biniam Girmay, Kaden Groves, Tom Crabbe, Davide Ballerini, Dylan van Baarle, Florian Vermeersch, Tim Wellens
** Jasper Philipsen, Arnaud de Lie, Matthew Brennan, Christophe Laporte
* Laurence Pithie, Matteo Trentin, Jonas Abrahamsen, Biniam Girmay, Kaden Groves, Tom Crabbe, Davide Ballerini, Dylan van Baarle, Florian Vermeersch, Tim Wellens
Pick: Jordi Meeus
How: Reduced peloton sprint.
Original: Rúben Silva
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Indeed! A reluctant gift maybe. Even more reluctant gift from Roglic! Tho I can’t see that Rog would have beaten Ving anyway.Lozza14-11-2026
- That really nasty crash in 2022 Liege must have played a big part - broken ribs, pneumothorax. You only have to look at his points tallies pre and post.Lozza14-11-2026
- Yeah, good luck getting tv and race organisers like ASO etc to part with their cash!Lozza14-11-2026
- 36 and Ineos have bought a rider on the downward slope. Bring back Dave and Rob who could manage the team. How are Ineos going to win a grand tour with people past their sell by date.paultryan200214-11-2026
- Mmmm would he be making these comments when he was on the richest team when riding. I think not i suspect. If we want money put into the sport we need sponsors who are prepared to put the money in. No disrespect but his team are 2nd or 3rd div in football terms with riders over the hill or 2nd string riders. If i was a sponsor i would be looking at what publicity am i getting back and Tudor really are just making up the numbers really.paultryan200214-11-2026
- I see (elsewhere) that Alaphilippe had more to say than what got relayed in this stub. Me: he was very good early but his latter third trajectory was the pits. His old boss did what he could (huffed and puffed) but Julian couldn't get his greatness back. Sometimes I wonder if crashes that didn't look like much changed the course of the rider.flyer14-11-2026
- I wouldn't classify it as a gift because the nasty consequences of taking it from Sepp would have been great and would persist and he knew it.flyer14-11-2026
- Ok. Tratnik's good and Red Bull's better so Tratnik may get what he wants.flyer14-11-2026
- Ok. So just saying he wasn't enjoying racing anymore is some kind of explanation? Me saying I don't enjoy his explanation is more explaining than he did.flyer14-11-2026
- Buitrago, was he their best rider in 2026? He's the chief loss for them and Martinez and Tiberi (especially) have to step up or they will be overtaken by Bahrain's younger riders like Omrzel. I'm still somewhat high on Martinez but Tiberi, after showing signs of promise, has fizzled. Bahrain still has a good team but they need to improve and exceed expectations. I'd be happy if Mohoric could manage to return to his better form for maybe one last year at least.flyer14-11-2026
Loading
1 Comments