Volta a Catalunya 2026 stage 6 preview, profiles, favourites & predictions - Jonas VIngegaard the man to beat on BRUTAL mountain stage

The 2026 Volta a Catalunya takes place from the 23rd to the 29th of March. The Catalan race has been widely regarded as the most important mountain test throughout the spring and is one of the most difficult races outside of the Grand Tours; which often sees many of the best climbers in the world go head-to-head in the Pyrenees. We preview stage 6, which is expected to start and finish at 12:50 and 17:00CET.

The race was first held in 1911, won by Sebastián Masdeu at the time. The race stopped during World War 1 but not during World War 2, remaining one of the top races in the calendar throughout those years. It is not only an event that holds great importance currently, as in the past none other than Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx won it on consecutive occasions. The race's winner list is no joke, featuring the likes of Felice Gimondi, Bernard Thévenet, Freddy Maertens, Francesco Moser, Sean Kelly, Robert Millar, Miguel Induráin and Fernando Escartin still in the 20th century.

This century the race has become part of the then-created World Tour and has been won by Spain's golden generation with Alberto Contador (later removed), Alejandro Valverde and Joaquím Rodríguez all in the winner list; Nairo Quintana, Richie Porte and most recently two Slovenians have won the race. In 2024 Tadej Pogacar took the title and in 2025 Primoz Roglic did it for the second time in his career.

The sixth stage of the race is a copy of the 2024 queen stage, where Tadej Pogacar obliterated the competition with a long-range attack. It is a stage designed for that; if the GC riders have the legs to turn the race around, they also have the terrain to make it happen.

158 kilometers in distance, starting in Berga but with very little to mention on the first half of the day. It is the Coll de Pradell which really takes the spotlight. In total the climb is 14.6 kilometers long at 6.9%, but this hides something as the climb has a descent and an easier first half.

The first 5.5 kilometers of the climb average 11%, which in itself is a brutality, but here its only part of the climb. It ends with 59 kilometers to go and the terrain to the finish is either up or down, making GC raids quite a viable option, as on the climb itself teammates matter little as well.

The riders still have two categorized climbs on the route however, one of them being the Coll de Saint Isidre (5Km; 7.9%; 26Km to go); and finally the summit finish in Queralt itself. The final climb, even if the race isn't exploded by then, still does provide more roads for differences to be created. With 6 kilometers in length and 7% in gradient, after such a race and stage, the climb can create bigger differences than one would expect.

Jonas Vingegaard - I think Visma didn't need to play the 'man in the breakaway tactic' today but they did and in the end it proved to be successful. The Dutch team didn't have guarantee that the Dane was above his rivals but he was, and he will continue to be. This is a very difficult stage but all Visma have to do is take a strong pace on the climbs and they won't be raided. The stage start is flat, the gaps today were big so not many riders can be threatening to begin with; and also the stage is just well suited to him and to an all-day pacing strategy. I think Visma will do what they did on the hilly days of Paris-Nice.

Then there is the battle for the remaining positions. Felix Gall took second place today and he can be quite happy today, he and Decathlon don't need to race aggressively this time around whilst Matthew Riccitello can back the Austrian. The attacking duties will be on BORA who have Florian Lipowitz in good form and also a Remco Evenepoel who may just attack from far as he has nothing to lose and can put proper pressure on their rivals; and also Bahrain - Victorious who do have a good collective and have Lenny Martínez in third.

On paper, Mikel Landa could also try and support Valentin Paret-Peintre in an attempt to jump on the podium, but it will be more difficult to beat the men he was with today in tomorrow's stage where the final climbs are shorter. Ben O'Connor, Mattias Skjelmose, Cian Uijtdebroeks, Enric Mas, Lorenzo Fortunato and Oscar Onley should be there whilst UAE will likely focus on a breakaway win for Marc Soler or Brandon McNulty; Whilst João Almeida will do his typical pacing strategy and can finish just about anywhere amongst the best.

If the front group succeeds we won't have surprises in that group, as the men who performed today are the ones capable of doing the same on Saturday. Tom Pidcock is unlikely to recover well from the crash and be back to his best straight away but that is worth considering; Lidl-Trek will likely have Giulio Ciccone try his luck again as that's what he came here for; Riders such as Richard Carapaz, Guillaume Martin, Carlos Rodríguez, Cristián Rodríguez and Carlos Verona are also outsiders.

*** Jonas Vingegaard
** Florian Lipowitz, Lenny Martínez, Felix Gall, Giulio Ciccone
* Remco Evenepoel, Mikel Landa, Valentin Paret-Peintre, Mattias Skjelmose, Cian Uijtdebroeks, Marc Soler, João Almeida, Brandon McNulty, Richard Carapaz

Pick: Jonas Vingegaard

How: Solo victory with attack on the final climb.