The Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec returns on Friday 11 September with a strong WorldTour field headed by Remco Evenepoel, Isaac del Toro, Paul Seixas, Tom Pidcock and three-time winner Michael Matthews.
The 2026 race takes place on a redesigned Québec City circuit, with the peloton completing 20 laps of a 10.3km loop for a total of 206km. The shorter circuit has actually increased the amount of climbing compared with 2025, with approximately 2,780 metres of ascent and 20 repetitions of the Côte de la Montagne before the uphill run towards the Plains of Abraham.
The complete route and how the new circuit changes the race are covered in our GP Québec 2026 route guide.
GP Québec 2026 start list
Data powered by FirstCycling.com
The start list remains subject to late changes before Friday’s race, with teams able to make replacements before the final confirmation and sign-on.
Evenepoel returns to the Canadian WorldTour races
Remco Evenepoel is one of the biggest names on the 2026 start list as he returns to the Québec and Montréal WorldTour races for the first time since 2019.
The Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe rider has the characteristics to make the revised Québec circuit difficult rather than wait for a reduced sprint. Twenty passages of the Côte de la Montagne provide plenty of opportunities for attacks, although the kilometre of rising road after the steepest section still gives a chasing group a chance to bring moves back.
Québec also begins an important Canadian block for Evenepoel ahead of the UCI Road World Championships in Montréal later in September.
Isaac del Toro gives UAE another major contender
UAE Team Emirates-XRG arrive with Isaac del Toro among their headline riders.
The Mexican has developed into one of the outstanding stage racers of 2026, with victories at the UAE Tour, Tirreno-Adriatico, Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Tour of Germany alongside his Tour de France podium.
Québec presents a different test. The individual climbs are short enough that Del Toro cannot rely on sustained climbing alone, but the repeated accelerations and almost 2,800 metres of total ascent give him plenty of opportunities to wear down the quicker finishers.
Brandon McNulty is another major option within the wider UAE Canadian programme after winning GP Montréal in 2025.
Paul Seixas has a route made for aggressive racing
Paul Seixas arrives in Canada after a remarkable second WorldTour season.
The 19-year-old has already won both the Tour of the Basque Country and La Flèche Wallonne in 2026 and is one of the riders most obviously suited to repeatedly attacking short climbs.
Decathlon CMA CGM also have Tiesj Benoot and Paul Lapeira among the riders currently listed for Québec, giving the team several different ways to approach the final laps.
Seixas may ultimately be better suited to the more demanding Montréal course two days later, but the compressed 2026 Québec circuit gives him more opportunity than previous editions to make the race selective.
Pidcock arrives after winning in Italy
Tom Pidcock heads to Canada in excellent form after winning GP Industria & Artigianato at Larciano.
The Pinarello-Q36.5 rider attacked on the final climb in Italy and held off the chase to take a solo victory, an encouraging result immediately before the Canadian WorldTour weekend.
Québec gives him similar tactical freedom. Waiting for a sprint against riders such as Matthews is unlikely to be his preferred route, but attacking over the Côte de la Montagne during the closing laps could put the pressure firmly onto the teams protecting faster finishers.
For anyone unfamiliar with the race, our beginner’s guide to GP Québec 2026 explains why the course tends to sit somewhere between a puncheur’s Classic and a race for durable sprinters.
Michael Matthews returns to his most successful Canadian race
Few riders understand GP Québec better than Michael Matthews.
The Australian has won the race three times, in 2018, 2019 and 2024, and his combination of climbing durability and finishing speed has repeatedly proved almost perfect for the Québec City circuit.
Matthews returns with Team Jayco AlUla alongside a line-up currently including Mauro Schmid, Anders Foldager, Chris Juul-Jensen, Luke Durbridge, Patrick Gamper and Robert Donaldson.
The redesigned circuit should make controlling the final hour harder, but if a reduced group reaches the last kilometre together Matthews remains one of the most dangerous riders in the field.
His record is part of a winners list explored in ProCyclingUK’s history of GP Québec.
Three former or expected favourites are missing
The start list has changed significantly from the field anticipated earlier in the season.
Arnaud De Lie will not defend Lotto-Intermarché’s hopes in Québec after illness forced him to withdraw from both Canadian WorldTour races. The Belgian won here in 2023 and would have been one of the clearest favourites for a reduced uphill sprint. His absence and the reasons behind it are covered in our update on De Lie missing GP Québec and GP Montréal.
Mathieu van der Poel had also originally been promoted among the Canadian headliners but has changed his preparation for the World Championships and will instead race the Tour de Luxembourg.
Tadej Pogačar is another major absentee after the injuries sustained during his Vuelta a España crash ended his 2026 season.
Those withdrawals leave Québec with a more open hierarchy than looked likely earlier in the summer.
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Photo Credit: Unipublic/Cxcling/Aritz Arambarri
Teams racing GP Québec 2026
All 18 WorldTeams are due to take part, joined by three ProTeams and a Canadian national selection.
The 22-team field is:
- Alpecin-Premier Tech
- Bahrain Victorious
- Decathlon CMA CGM Team
- EF Education-EasyPost
- Groupama-FDJ United
- Netcompany INEOS
- Lidl-Trek
- Lotto-Intermarché
- Movistar Team
- NSN Cycling Team
- Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe
- Soudal Quick-Step
- Team Jayco AlUla
- Team Picnic PostNL
- Team Visma | Lease a Bike
- UAE Team Emirates-XRG
- Uno-X Mobility
- XDS Astana Team
- Modern Adventure Pro Cycling
- Pinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team
- Tudor Pro Cycling Team
- Team Canada
GP Québec 2026 race details
| Detail | GP Québec 2026 |
|---|---|
| Date | Friday 11 September 2026 |
| Location | Québec City, Canada |
| Classification | UCI WorldTour, 1.UWT |
| Distance | 206km |
| Circuit | 20 laps of 10.3km |
| Total climbing | Approximately 2,780 metres |
| Key climb | Côte de la Montagne, 600m at 9% |
| Local start time | 11:00 |
| UK start time | 16:00 BST |
| 2025 winner | Julian Alaphilippe |
The race starts and finishes around the Plains of Abraham, with the Côte de la Montagne providing the main selection point on every lap. The steep 600-metre ascent averages around 9% and reaches approximately 13%, before another kilometre of gentler climbing carries the riders towards the finish.
UK viewers can find the latest broadcast timings in our guide to how to watch GP Québec 2026 live.
With Evenepoel, Del Toro, Seixas and Pidcock all capable of attacking before the finish and Matthews offering the clearest threat if a sizeable group survives, the final start list gives the redesigned circuit several very different ways to produce a winner.
