Remco Evenepoel won the 2026 Amstel Gold Race Men after beating Mattias Skjelmose in a two-up sprint at the end of a long and increasingly attritional day in Limburg. The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider made the decisive selection with Romain Grégoire and Skjelmose before the final lap, then reduced the race to a duel on the closing circuit around Valkenburg.
Skjelmose reached the final kilometre with Evenepoel still on his wheel, but the Belgian timed his sprint cleanly and accelerated away inside the final few hundred metres. Behind them, Benoît Cosnefroy won the sprint for third after Marco Frigo’s long day in the breakaway finally came to an end in the closing stages.
It was a victory built on patience, control and late precision. Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe spent much of the race policing the peloton for Evenepoel, and although the day remained relatively calm for the opening half, the changing weather, repeated climbs and a sequence of crashes turned the final 100km into a very different race.
A nine-rider breakaway settles the early race
The peloton rolled out from Maastricht for a short 1.8km neutral zone before racing began on the 257.2km route. Early attacks came quickly, but the first 10 minutes were controlled at around 42kph and no move was immediately allowed to settle.
The day’s first climb, the Maasberg, arrived after 10km and helped the race finally produce a breakaway. Nine riders went clear: Huub Artz, Warren Barguil, Joseba López, Siebe Deweirdt, Filip Maciejuk, Marco Frigo, Xabier Mikel Azparren, Valentin Retailleau and Abram Stockman.
The group quickly opened a gap of more than a minute, then stretched it beyond four minutes as the peloton accepted the composition of the move. With Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Lidl-Trek, Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates-XRG all holding fire, the opening phase became a controlled grind through the early Limburg climbs.
Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe eventually took up responsibility, using Tim van Dijke and Danny van Poppel to manage the tempo for Evenepoel. The break’s advantage stabilised at around four minutes through the middle portion of the race, with the average speed still above 43kph after two hours.
Rain and rising pace change the race
The first half of the race was relatively calm, but the tone changed as rain hit the route and more teams joined Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe at the front. Team Visma | Lease a Bike and Decathlon-CMA CGM added pressure, and the break’s lead began to fall quickly.
Paul Lapeira crashed soon after Decathlon-CMA CGM had contributed to the pace-making, while Dorian Godon suffered a mechanical issue involving a loose rear wheel. The race became more nervous, with the peloton beginning to split under the pressure of Nico Denz and the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe train.
The first passage of the Cauberg reduced the early move further. Maciejuk, Stockman, López and Deweirdt were among those distanced, while Barguil and Retailleau also lost contact. By 80km to go, only Frigo, Azparren and Artz remained at the front, with the peloton still just over a minute behind.
Pepijn Reinderink attacked from the bunch on the Bemelerberg and briefly inserted himself between the peloton and the leaders, but he was later caught as the race sharpened again. Frigo and Artz continued to resist, and the Italian soon proved the strongest of the surviving breakaway riders.
Frigo goes solo before the favourites move
Frigo dropped Artz on the final ascent of the Gulperberg and pushed on alone. Behind, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe led into the climb as though setting up a major move, with Evenepoel and Skjelmose well placed, but the Belgian did not yet launch.
The decisive acceleration instead came from Romain Grégoire. The Groupama-FDJ United rider attacked with around 50km remaining, drawing out Evenepoel, Skjelmose, Matteo Jorgenson, Kevin Vauquelin and Mathieu Burgaudeau. The move quickly became decisive, but the race was soon hit by a major turning point on a wet downhill corner.
Jorgenson, Vauquelin and Artz crashed, with Jorgenson and Artz staying down. Marc Hirschi then crashed on the same corner. Evenepoel, Grégoire and Skjelmose avoided the trouble and pushed on, catching Frigo before the Keutenberg.
On the steepest climb of the race, Evenepoel lifted the pace. Frigo began to lose contact, while the chase group behind was led by riders including Benoît Cosnefroy, Albert Withen Philipsen, Alex Baudin, Ewen Costiou, Marco Frigo and Mauri Vansevenant. By 30km to go, the leading trio had become Evenepoel, Skjelmose and Grégoire, with the first chase around 25 seconds behind.
Photo Credit: GettyEvenepoel and Skjelmose distance Grégoire
Rain returned before the penultimate ascent of the Cauberg, making the roads greasier as the leaders entered Valkenburg. Evenepoel attacked on the climb, and although Skjelmose could follow, Grégoire began to lose contact. The Frenchman fought to stay close, but once the road levelled out, Skjelmose finally came through and helped Evenepoel build the gap.
Across the line for the penultimate time, Evenepoel and Skjelmose had turned the race into a two-rider contest. Grégoire was 10 seconds behind at first, then drifted further back on the Geulhemmerberg. The chase group eventually caught him, while Evenepoel and Skjelmose continued to work together out front.
By the final ascent of the Bemelerberg, the leading pair had more than 45 seconds over Grégoire and nearly a minute over the chasers. That advantage stretched beyond a minute soon after, confirming that the win would be decided between Evenepoel and Skjelmose.
The battle for third remained more open. Frigo tried to ghost away from the chasing group after spending much of the day up the road, but Albert Withen Philipsen shut him down. Verstrynge and Costiou also tried to shift the chase, but the group stayed together into the final Cauberg ascent.
Evenepoel finishes it on the final straight
Evenepoel led Skjelmose onto the final ascent of the Cauberg with a lead of around 1:40 over the chase group. The Belgian kept the pace high, then briefly backed off to force Skjelmose through. It was a clear tactical exchange, with both riders aware that the finish after the climb would come quickly.
Inside the final two kilometres, Evenepoel continued to come through when required, but once they reached the flamme rouge, Skjelmose led the way. The Lidl-Trek rider still had Evenepoel locked onto his wheel with 500 metres remaining, but the Belgian had enough left to produce a decisive sprint.
Evenepoel accelerated with real force inside the final few hundred metres and left Skjelmose behind. The Dane was well beaten by the line, while Cosnefroy took third from the chasing group after Frigo’s final attempt was caught under the flamme rouge.
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Photo Credit: Getty
Evenepoel praises team control after April breakthrough
After finishing fifth overall at the Volta a Catalunya and third at the Tour of Flanders, Evenepoel finally turned his strong April into a win. Speaking after the race, he said the result meant a great deal after a run of near misses.
“It means a lot. I mean, I’ve had a pretty good last month of April with Catalunya, in Flanders, but to take a win is always a bit different,” Evenepoel said.
He also pointed to the nature of Amstel Gold Race as one of the reasons he had arrived with confidence.
“I think I mentioned already that I really love this race. Lots of short, hard climbs, and actually the race more or less opened in the same place this year again. So I was really confident. I felt much better than I did last year in the final.”
Evenepoel was also quick to credit Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe’s work, particularly after the team had carried much of the race control from a long way out.
“I’m just very proud to finish off all of the teamwork. Danny van Poppel and Tim van Dijke, they had to control the whole race alone. Then my other teammates as well. They dropped me off in perfect position always, and also with the rain, it was not really easy to stay calm. But this is one of my favourite races in the season, and to win it in my second participation, it feels amazing.”
For Skjelmose, second place marked another strong result in the Ardennes-style terrain, even if the final sprint showed the gap between reaching the decisive move and finishing it off. Cosnefroy’s third place gave UAE Team Emirates-XRG a podium after they were active late, while Frigo’s long breakaway effort was one of the defining rides of the day even without a podium reward.
Amstel Gold Race Men 2026 Result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Getty
