Tour of Britain 2026 stage 2 preview, profiles, favourites & predictions - Merlier versus Kooij on the first bunch sprint
CyclingWednesday, 02 September 2026 at 16:03
The 2026 Lloyds Tour of Britain will take place from the 2nd to the 6th of September and will be one of the most important races to prepare for the World Championships - as well as being Great Britain's top road event. Like every year, top classics specialists and sprinters will be present throughout the five-day race. We preview all of the race's stages, as well as looking into their profiles and providing daily predictions.
The race was first held back in 1987, having been won by Joey McLoughlin in its debut years. Before a multi-year pause in the mid-90's, the likes of Max Sciandri and Maurizio Fondriest already found themselves on the winner's list. Many classics riders are present on this list, including big names such as Edvald Boasson Hagen, Lars Boom, Dylan van Baarle, Julian Alaphilippe, Mathieu van der Poel, Wout Van Aert... Bradley Wiggins is also a former winner in Britain.
Last year it was Romain Grégoire who took the overall win over former World Champions Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe.
Stages Tour of Britain 2026
| Stage | Date | Starting location | Finishing location | Distance (km) | Type | Est. start | Est. finish |
| 1 | Wed 2 Sep | Lincoln | Lincoln | 182.5 | Hilly | 11:45 | 15:50 |
| 2 | Thu 3 Sep | Boston | Skegness | 181.1 | Flat | 11:45 | 16:10 |
| 3 | Fri 4 Sep | Hull | Beverley | 196 | Flat | 11:45 | 16:10 |
| 4 | Sat 5 Sep | Helmsley | Leyburn | 164 | Hilly | 12:15 | 16:10 |
| 5 | Sun 6 Sep | Earlston | Earlston | 159 | Flat | 12:15 | 16:00 |
Preview Tour of Britain 2026 stage 2
The opening stage of the race was tackled like an all-out classic, something that blew the overall classification up fully. Hence, the minor seconds may not be relevant at the end to finish in the Top10 or a similar result, meaning that we shouldn't see the GC men get in the middle of a sprinter stage.
There are two clear favourites, two Tour de France stage winners that is: Tim Merlier and Olav Kooij. Both have good leadouts, and the latter has great form coming in from the Renewi Tour. But Merlier is, on paper, more consistent in the flat bunch sprints.
The likes of Ethan Vernon, Sam Bennett, Sam Welsford and Matteo Moschetti will also be outsiders, but potential winners if the top two don't find themselves in ideal positions.
Prediction Tour of Britain 2026 stage 2:
*** Tim Merlier, Olav Kooij
** Ethan Vernon
* Matteo Moschetti, Sam Welsford, Timothy Dupont, Matthew Walls, Sam Bennett
Pick: Tim Merlier
How: Regular bunch sprint.
Profile stage 2: Boston - Skegness
Boston - Skegness, 181 kilometers
Stage 2 begins in Boston and will take the riders through a flat day in the east of the country. It will be a day for the sprinters, with nothing that should prevent it, bringing the stage to a close after 181 kilometers in Skgness.
Profile stage 3: Hull - Beverley
Hull - Beverley, 196 kilometers
Stage 3 begins in Hull and will be another day for the sprinters. This time around there are a few small categorized climbs throughout the day, although none are actually real climbs.
The riders arrive in Beverley and then take on a three-lap circuit, which ends with a small uphill dash to the line.
Profile stage 4: Helmsley - Leyburn
Helmsley - Helmsley, 164 kilometers
Perhaps the queen stage of the race, the fourth day of the Tour of Britain starts and finishes in the town of Helmsley. A few climbs throughout the day make be decisive for the outcome of the race.
In particular, those in the final 65 kilometers. 2.4Km at 6.3% (64Km to go); the climb to Redmire (3.5Km; 8.2%; 40.5Km to go) and a hilltop right after which is 2.2Km long at 5.6%, ending with 35 kilometers to go.
On this sequence of two climbs damage will have to be made by those who climb best, hoping to take advantage and improve their chances of winning.
If the difference is not made there, there is a 400-meter ramp at 7% with 1.5 kilometers to go which can do it, before a slight uphill drag to the line.
Profile stage 5: Earlston - Earlston
Earlston - Earlston, 159 kilometers
The final stage of the race goes through some rolling terrain, but in the 159-kilometer loop around Earlston, there won't be any meaningful climbs in which differences can be made. A breakaway can succeed, but a bunch sprint is still the likely scenario at the end of the day.
Previous previews
Preview Tour of Britain 2026 overall classification
The overall classification should be decided on only two stages, the first being the opening day in which there are not tactics, only good positioning towards the end. Then stage 4 has one relatively long climb where differences can still be made.
UAE have Tim Wellens, Florian Vermeersch, Felix Grossschartner and Benoît Cosnefroy all as contenders for the GC and they must use their depth if they want to win this race.
Ilan van WIlder, Yannis Voisard and Aurélien Paret-Peintre are more guided towards the longer efforts and can be part of the battle whilst on the faster type of riders we've got figures such as Filippo Ganna, Connor Swift and Laurenz Rex who may be a threat.
Prediction Tour of Britain 2026 overall classification:
*** Ilan van Wilder, Tim Wellens
** Yannis Voisard, Benoît Cosnefroy
* Felix Grossschartner, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Filippo Ganna
Pick: Tim Wellens
Preview Tour of Britain 2026 stage 1
The opening stage will be all about positioning into the climb. Sprinters can win it, puncheurs can win it too. Olav Kooij might be the main favourite in a field where his form should be enough to survive the climb, and have the legs to sprint.
But the puncheurs stand just as good chances, someone like Benoît Cosnefroy is of the best in the world on this kind of effort.
Laurenz Rex, Tim Wellens, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Ethan Vernon, Matteo Trentin, Rick Pluimers and Filippo Ganna are all outsiders for this stage.
Prediction Tour of Britain 2026 stage 1:
*** Olav Kooij
** Benoît Cosnefroy, Laurenz Rex
* Tim Wellens, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Tim Merlier, Filippo Ganna, Ethan Vernon, Jake Stewart, Matteo Trentin, Rick Pluimers
Pick: Olav Kooij
How: Reduced bunch sprint
Profile stage 1: Lincoln - Lincoln
Lincoln - Lincoln, 182 kilometers
The race begins in Lincoln, perhaps with its most important stage of all. The race won't feature any big climbs this year, and so the overall classification will be decided in a matter of seconds, and bonifications most likely.
In the iconic British city there will be a decision on the opening day atop one of the most famous finales in the country.
In Lincoln, the riders will do a circuit around Michaelgate, the 400-meter long climb that averages just over 10% which brings the first stage to a closing. The riders will go up it on five occasions in the finish circuit, and the end of the climb is placed 500 meters away from the finish line.
List of winners Tour of Britain
| Year | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| 2025 | Romain Grégoire | Remco Evenepoel | Julian Alaphilippe |
| 2024 | Stephen Williams | Oscar Onley | Tom Donnenwirth |
| 2023 | Wout van Aert | Tobias Halland Johannessen | Damien Howson |
| 2022 | Gonzalo Serrano | Tom Pidcock | Omar Fraile |
| 2021 | Wout van Aert | Ethan Hayter | Julian Alaphilippe |
| 2020 | — | — | — |
| 2019 | Mathieu van der Poel | Matteo Trentin | Jasper De Buyst |
| 2018 | Julian Alaphilippe | Wout Poels | Primož Roglič |
| 2017 | Lars Boom | Edvald Boasson Hagen | Stefan Küng |
| 2016 | Steve Cummings | Rohan Dennis | Tom Dumoulin |
| 2015 | Edvald Boasson Hagen | Wout Poels | Owain Doull |
| 2014 | Dylan van Baarle | Michał Kwiatkowski | Bradley Wiggins |
| 2013 | Bradley Wiggins | Martin Elmiger | Simon Yates |
| 2012 | Nathan Haas | Damiano Caruso | Leigh Howard |
| 2011 | Lars Boom | Steve Cummings | Jan Bárta |
| 2010 | Michael Albasini | Borut Božič | Gregory Henderson |
| 2009 | Edvald Boasson Hagen | Chris Sutton | Martin Reimer |
| 2008 | Geoffroy Lequatre | Steve Cummings | Ian Stannard |
| 2007 | Romain Feillu | Adrián Palomares | Luke Roberts |
| 2006 | Martin Pedersen | Luis Pasamontes | Filippo Pozzato |
| 2005 | Nick Nuyens | Michael Blaudzun | Javier Cherro |
| 2004 | Mauricio Alberto Ardila | Julian Dean | Nick Nuyens |
| 1999 | Marc Wauters | Benoît Joachim | Bjørnar Vestøl |
| 1998 | Stuart O'Grady | Chris Boardman | Dariusz Baranowski |
| 1994 | Maurizio Fondriest | Viatcheslav Ekimov | Olaf Ludwig |
| 1993 | Phil Anderson | Wladimir Belli | Bo André Namtvedt |
| 1992 | Maximilian Sciandri | Adrie van der Poel | Hendrik Redant |
| 1991 | Phil Anderson | Rudy Verdonck | Heinz Imboden |
| 1990 | Michel Dernies | Robert Millar | Maurizio Fondriest |
| 1989 | Robert Millar | Mauro Gianetti | Remig Stumpf |
| 1988 | Malcolm Elliott | Joey McLoughlin | Sean Kelly |
| 1987 | Joey McLoughlin | Steven Rooks | Sergio Finazzi |
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.
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- Can see that - why burn the matches in vain - it’s a long race, riders have other goals and ambitionsCrashjames02-09-2026
- Hah now it’s a race!Crashjames02-09-2026
- Stef Clement is an "analyst,"... with the BS he said? Really, are you serious? Does he know that crashes in numerous occasions are inevitable and unavoidable? No he doesn't. If he did, he wouldn't be spitting this #$"@§%&/()=* nonsense around. PS: Did Jonas, Van Aert, Remco, Roglič...etc etc. crash so many times because they knew they were the best and became careless? Answer this one Clement... just don't insult my intelligence. Capish?PogiSloFans02-09-2026
- What a stupid thing to say! Niki Lauda raced again 42 days after he burned out. If he's ready, he will race.MajorPayne02-09-2026
- So, based on that logic, there should be an asterisk next to every XC rider that is not Pidcock and ever cyclocross rider that isint van der Poel?Theleg402-09-2026
- Carapaz will ride for Carapaz and Carapaz only.jad2901-09-2026
- literally everytime visma has solid racing options that they table to 'ride for wout' to sprint it backfires.jad2901-09-2026
- My thoughts exactly.anonymouscyclist01-09-2026
- Yeah. This is his 10th GT and his first DNF in a GT. Relative to many riders he’s been lucky in avoiding illness. And lucky or skillful, or most likely a bit of both, to avoid race-ending crashes.mobk01-09-2026
- Forgot to mention that Michaelgate is cobbled
Rafionain-Glas01-09-2026
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