Remco Evenepoel heads into the European Championships in Ljubljana as the overwhelming favourite. The absence of defending champion Tadej Pogacar, who has been ruled out following the injury he suffered at the Vuelta a Espana, leaves the Belgian as the leading contender for the continental jersey on Slovenian roads.
The course appears ideally suited to his strengths. The 196.3-kilometre race includes five laps of the finishing circuit and, crucially, five ascents of Mozjanca: a 2.1-kilometre climb averaging 10.2%, with gradients reaching 15.8%. It offers perfect terrain for Evenepoel to make the race hard and try to go clear alone.
However, the Belgian will not have the title handed to him. Several riders in the field could withstand his accelerations, force him into a tactical battle or capitalise on any moment of weakness. Five names stand out as potential threats because of their strengths and current form.
The recent World Championships in Montreal add some uncertainty. Evenepoel finished 12th in Canada, while some of his upcoming rivals showed they could stay in contention in an exceptionally selective race. These are the five riders who could challenge him for European gold.
Podium of the 2025 men's elite European Championships road race
Giulio Ciccone
Giulio Ciccone arrives in Ljubljana with a stronger case than his relatively quiet build-up to the World Championships might suggest. The Italian finished ninth in Montreal, having been part of the front group contesting the medals and joining Tom Pidcock in one of the final attempts to chase down Brandon McNulty. His performance confirmed his good form.
Ciccone is also well suited to explosive finales like this. He can dig deep on longer climbs, respond to changes of pace and, above all, race aggressively when the decisive moments arrive. Mozjanca could suit him if the field is whittled down gradually and the main favourites find themselves without teammates in the final laps.
The Italian will also have an important tactical asset. Italy have a competitive squad featuring riders such as Giulio Pellizzari, Davide Piganzoli and Christian Scaroni. After a strong World Championship performance, Ciccone arrives with more encouraging signs than several of his rivals and could be one of Evenepoel’s most dangerous challengers.
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Juan Ayuso
Juan Ayuso is one of the race’s biggest unknowns. On paper, the Spaniard has the qualities to challenge Evenepoel for victory: he is an excellent climber, has a sharp acceleration and can thrive on courses where short, explosive ascents create the gaps.
His performance at the World Championships in Montreal, however, fell well short of expectations. He finished 13th and admitted afterwards that he had been completely empty in the final laps, having stayed with the best for much of the race. It was a major disappointment given that he had been one of Spain’s leading hopes.
The European Championships therefore offer an opportunity to bounce back. The Ljubljana course is less demanding than the World Championship route and could suit him better. If Ayuso rediscovers his best form and gets over Mozjanca close to the favourites, he has the quality to contest gold in the closing kilometres.
Primoz Roglic
Primoz Roglic will be one of the central figures at the European Championships for an obvious reason: he is racing at home and will lead a Slovenian team hoping to retain the continental title in Pogacar’s absence. The Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe rider knows the roads well and will have added motivation in front of his home crowd.
His Montreal performance also offers grounds for optimism. Roglic was involved at the key moments and formed part of the group trying to keep the battle for the rainbow jersey under control. Although he eventually finished 21st, he again showed his ability to remain in contention through a hugely demanding race.
Roglic’s main asset will be his experience. He reads these finales well, can attack from distance and has enough acceleration to inflict damage on Mozjanca. Slovenia also have a powerful squad, with Matej Mohoric, Jan Tratnik, Domen Novak and others capable of making the race hard before the decisive phase.
Primoz Roglic in action at the 2026 Montreal World Championships
Mathias Vacek
Mathias Vacek is perhaps one of the less obvious threats, but the Czech rider has several qualities that could make him a genuine contender. He is a versatile rider who can handle hilly terrain, sustain a high pace for long periods and hold on when the race becomes selective.
The course could work in his favour if the race does not become an exclusive contest between the climbers too early. Five ascents of Mozjanca will take a heavy toll, but the sections after the climb offer opportunities to regain ground and attack from distance. Vacek could exploit that combination of strength and endurance.
He also arrives with the experience of having ridden the Tour de France, where he finished seventh in the young rider classification and 49th overall. He is not among the favourites to the same extent as Evenepoel, Ayuso or Roglic, but if he stays close to the best in the final laps, he could become a serious tactical threat.
Anthon Charmig
Anthon Charmig completes the list as a more unpredictable contender, but one particularly suited to the race’s mountainous profile. The Dane is accustomed to demanding terrain and could come into his own in the final laps of a race of attrition.
His 2026 season has offered several encouraging signs. He finished seventh overall at the Tour Down Under, won a stage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes and, above all, ended the summer with third-place finishes at both the GP de Quebec and the GP Industria & Artigianato. He also finished 24th in the exceptionally demanding Montreal World Championships.
Denmark have a strong squad, with Mads Pedersen as their leading rider. Charmig could play an important tactical role if the race splits before the final climbs. If he gets over Mozjanca alongside the favourites, his ability to attack and manoeuvre within a small group could give him an unexpected opportunity to fight for the medals, or even spring a surprise on Evenepoel himself.
Javier RampeCycling Journalist
Javier Rampe is a sports analyst with more than 15 years of experience. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Rome and a Diploma in Business Studies from the University of Cádiz. Despite coming from an academic background not particularly associated with cycling, his passion for both cycling and journalism was instilled in him from an early age. He grew up following Miguel Indurain and José María “El Chava” Jiménez. An admirer of Michael Robinson’s communication style and journalistic approach, he was inspired to pursue a degree in Journalism at the University of Buenos Aires, which he is currently completing.
He has always maintained close ties with the worlds of sport and culture, contributing from a young age to sports blogs and film and music review websites. His work has appeared in media outlets such as Cope, RAI, and Radio Con Vos. He is also the founder of the cycling-focused podcast El Contraanálisis and the football interview channel Días De Fútbol, dedicated to conversations with professional footballers.
In addition to his work at Ciclismoaldia, Javier has interviewed some of the most influential figures in modern cycling, including Alejandro Valverde and Tadej Pogačar, as well as key voices in anti-doping policy such as Alberto Yelmo, David Varillas, and Marcelo Milano. Marcos Maynar, in relation to the ‘Operación Ílex’ case, is also among the personalities he has interviewed. He enjoys conducting in-depth analysis of the cycling ecosystem and has attended major events such as Strade Bianche, the Vuelta a Andalucía, and Itzulia, as well as numerous national cyclo-cross races.
His background in economics, combined with extensive experience in marketing and corporate communications, drives his continuous study of positioning strategies and ensures that he always keeps his focus on crafting compelling and evocative headlines.
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- @MrMauMau: at the moment that McNulty took off, del Toro had Seixas on his wheel. Later on, was he able to follow Pidcock as he linked up to and passed Ciccone? He was not. That tells me what I need to know - he was gassed and couldn't follow. Maybe he had less reason because of team politics, but it can't have all been politics.RidesHills30-09-2026
- The level of the sport even at lower ranks is very high, maybe too much..
leedorney30-09-2026 - I heard Wout had been instrumental that day in chasing back MVDP’s attacks, tho tbh I didn’t watch more than short highlights. (Don’t need to watch Remco winning 😖)Lozza30-09-2026
- 😂 Me too (in the absence of Pogi)!Lozza30-09-2026
- This is all very Hornery. The vast majority gave VDP little chance on this circuit that most said favoured the climbing duo. This was probably also quite a widespread theoretical calculation amongst riders and teams but the facts of racing are that each race is determined by how each rider reacts towards precalculated expectations until the scenario changes, and then, without radio and with so much chopping and changing, good luck to get any strategy going well before someone else messes yours up again. Sometimes it seems like some think riders have their strength on the day visible on their helmet so others can automatically know which is the best strategy to adopt to beat them.Mistermaumau30-09-2026
- As if his opinion is respected in the cycling world.anonymouscyclist30-09-2026
- Which simply isn’t possible. It is nigh-on impossible to prove, unless you have hard physical evidence, of which there often isn’t any.anonymouscyclist30-09-2026
- This, too. This definitely crossed my mind, and I didn’t think it was infeasible, either. But I didn’t want to suggest it on here as there is a specific user who will take it as their queue to troll… ;)anonymouscyclist30-09-2026
- In Lances day, Bruyneel would have put sticks in riders spokes to help Lance if he could.awp30-09-2026
- I was amazed at how much Seixas showed he had left in the initial group chasing McNulty. Would explain why he was so distraught at getting cramp, he knew what he was still capable of, after hiding behind Del Toro.Hills3330-09-2026
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