The Lloyds Tour of Britain Men falls late in the calendar, but in a slot that it has made its own. Riders who aren’t going to the world champs could be winding down already, and those changing teams might find themselves out of favour. But there are also riders who aren’t at the Vuelta a España who need racing miles in their legs, and others coming back from injury with a point to prove.
Add into the mix riders from development teams stepping up to the senior teams and half-a-dozen smaller teams getting their chance to mix it with WorldTour opponents, and you have a wide mix of talent and experience which can make for some interesting racing.
Not only has the Tour of Britain provided riders with racing miles ahead of the world champs in previous years, it has also helped launch the likes of Julian Alaphilippe and Mathieu van der Poel into the upper echelons of the sport.
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All of which means there are lots of reasons to watch, and thanks to a last-minute deal, that can be done on the TV, as well as by the roadside. The race will be broadcast on TNT Sports as well as ITV and YouTube.
|
Stage |
Date |
Start |
Finish |
Distance |
Terrain |
|
1 |
2 Sept |
Lincoln |
Lincoln |
182.5km |
Flat |
|
2 |
3 Sept |
Boston |
Skegness |
180.2km |
Flat |
|
3 |
4 Sept |
Hull |
Beverley |
194.1km |
Flat |
|
4 |
5 Sept |
Helmsley |
Leyburn |
170.3km |
Hilly |
|
5 |
6 Sept |
Earlston |
Earlston |
156.1km |
Hilly |
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Stage 1: Lincoln > Lincoln
Wednesday, 2 September
Distance: 182.5km
Elevation: 1,393m
Terrain: Flat
The Tour of Britain rolls out from the shadow of Lincoln Cathedral for the first of five stages. Considering the Lincoln GP, the UK’s most iconic one-day race, has been running for 70 years, it’s a little surprising that this is the first time the modern Tour of Britain has visited the city.
To make up for lost time, the cathedral – which was for over 200 years the tallest building in the world – will welcome the peloton back after 130 kilometres before they complete four-and-a-half laps of a 12-kilometre circuit that includes the cobbled climb of Michaelgate the focal point of the Lincoln GP.
While the climb is only 0.3km long, averaging 11%, it’s narrow and cobbled, and could catch out an unsuspecting fast-man, who will naturally be thinking this stage is a nailed-on sprint. The climb itself won’t be hard enough to distance a WorldTour sprinter, but positioning might. They do at least have four dry runs onto and up the climb in order to nail the final ascent.
Where to watch: It has to be Michaelgate. The pressure will be on each time they go up the cobbled climb
Stage 2: Boston > Skegness
Thursday, 3 September
Distance: 180.2km
Elevation: 873m
Terrain: Flat
The peloton remain in the east of England for stage two as the sprint teams will once again be tasked with holding a break at arms length beforing reeling them in before they hit Skegness.
After leaving Boston, that gave it’s name to the US city, there are few geographical features on the route that covers the ground between Lincoln and the coast, affectionately known as the Costa del Lincs. The only thing that could disrupt a sprint finish is crosswinds hitting the peloton across the open farmland. Although that’s unlikely at this time of year DS’s in the team cars will have to keep an eye on the weather app.
The run-in to the finish is straight from the sprint textbook, with just one lefthand turn with around 500m to go (outside Tony’s Fish and Chips, if you’re peckish), and a dead-straight run to the line just passed the pier.
Pro riders are no stranger to popular holiday beach resorts, so if the local council can somehow relax the tax laws they could see an influx of riders relocating from Monaco. Skegness’s beach is much bigger, after all.
Where to watch: Anyone wanting to get some miles in can watch the riders roll out of Boston before riding 24 miles to Skegness for a paddle, ice-cream and sprint finish
(Image credit: SWPix.com / Bruce Rollinson)
Stage 3: Hull > Beverley
Friday, 4 September
Distance: 194.1km
Elevation: 1,612m
Terrain: Flat
Hull hasn’t hosted a stage of the Tour of Britain since 2008, so the peloton should get an enthusiastic send off as it departs Kingston and heads east along the Humber Estuary. Hitting the North Sea, the course turns north along the oft-wind whipped coastline, passing through Withersea and Hornsea to Skipsea.
This is a long, flat stage, set-up for sprint finish, but once the route arcs back west the landscape gets lumpier, as the course wends through the Wolds. Riders face their first speed bump leaving Burton Agnes, but a more significant climb awaits between Octon and Langtoft, with the ascent followed by an exciting downhill.
After Garton-on-the-Wolds the peloton faces another 1.6km climb to Sledmere, from where the route drops into Wetwang and undulates to the bustling market town of Beverley. Here riders will do three-and-a-half laps of a 16km circuit before the final uphill haul to the finish at the racecourse, where the then-Visma rider Olav Kooij won a sprint to take his third consecutive stage win in the 2023 Tour of Britain.
Where to watch: Heard to the racecourse to witness a probable sprint finish, or to see the peloton several times, as riders jostle for position, stakeout a spot on the 16km circuit between Beverley, Walkington and Bishop Burton.
Stage 4: Helmsley > Leyburn
Saturday, 5 September
Distance: 170.3km
Elevation: 2,839m
Terrain: Hilly
Considering this stage takes in both the North York Moors and the Yorkshire Dales National Park, the route isn’t as severe as it could be. Still, with over 2,300m of elevation, today is the race’s queen stage with four major climbs and a fair few smaller ones in between.
No sooner has the peloton left the start in Helmsley than they’re out of the moors and on their way to the Dales, via Ripon. The first major climb comes after Pateley Bridge, taking the riders up to The Coldstones Cut. After the descent to Grassington they head north where three climbs in quick succession including the highpoint of the day on Grinton Moor.
The race is almost certain to break up on this section, and if the weather comes in it’ll be tougher still. Any non-sprinters with designs on GC will know the latter half of today’s stage is their best chance of gaining time. They’ve even got a final 12km largely uphill to gain a few more seconds or just make a winning move.
Where to watch: If the sun is shining, ride up one of the major climbs to cheer them on. If it’s not, you could watch in Ripon, then nip up the A1M to the finish.
Stage 5: Earlston > Earlston
Sunday, 6 September
Distance: 156.1km
Elevation: 2,236m
Terrain: Hilly
The tour will race towards its conclusion in the Scottish Lowlands, with an exciting parcours that loops around the beautiful Borders region, starting and finishing in the market town of Earlston, which is featuring in the event for the first time. A second consecutive climbing stage, there will be plenty of points up for grabs for riders fighting for the polka-dot King of the Mountain jersey on the last day.
Leaving Earlston, the peloton will embark on route shaped like a drunken figure-eight, going east through Smailholm and passing the confluence of the rivers Tweed and Teviot at Kelso, before pedalling north to Greenlaw on Blackadder Water, the centrifugal point of the course. From Duns the real climbing begins as the route runs northwest, deeper into East Lothian’s lovely Lammermuir Hills, and crosses the neck of Whiteadder Water. Riders reach the highest point on the course at Redstone Rig, before turning south, scaling Duddy Bank and heading back towards Earlston, where the event concludes with GC position-chasing hopefuls racing around two laps of a 19km circuit.
Where to watch: For spectacular scenery and close proximity to riders exhibiting their climbing prowess, head into the Lammermuir Hills around Whiteadder Water; otherwise Earlston offers the chance to see riders three times.
Contenders
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Tim Merlier (33, Bel)
Soudal Quick-Step
UCI Ranking: 35
2026 wins: 8
Three stage wins at the Tour de France put Tim Merlier at the top of the sprinting tree this summer, so expect Soudal Quick-Step to be taking on pace-setting duties on the front of the peloton over the first three days.
His Tour wins showed he is one of the best freelancers in the bunch, often winning after manoeuvring himself into the best position and then timing his sprint to perfection. Eighth at the Belgian Gravel Champs last week is his only day of racing since he missed the time-cut on stage 15 of the Tour so there is a question over his form. But then he has won a stage in every stage race he’s ridden since the 2024 Giro.
If his form is good, and he takes an early stage or two, his team will start to think about how they could keep him in the jersey all the way to the finish in Earlston. A tough ask, but not impossible.
Olav Kooij (24, Ned)
Decathlon CMA CGM
UCI ranking: 40
2026 wins: 4
Only two riders have ever won more Tour of Britain stage wins than Olav Kooij: Edvald Boasson Hagen and Sir Mark Cavendish. Kooij has won seven stages in just two editions, three in 2023 and four last year. If he were to repeat 2025’s feat again at a third time of asking, then he would hold the record outright, beating the sprinting knight.
This season has not been simple for the 24-year-old, who didn’t start his season until the end of May due to illness, but hit the ground running, with two stage wins at the Boucles de Mayenne, and a win at the Baloise Belgium Tour. Kooij then followed it up with an impressive first Tour de France for Decathlon CMA CGM, winning stage five, and being on the podium four more times, all in a team focused on the GC hopes of Paul Seixas. In a team more focused on his sprints, expect him to make hay.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Filippo Ganna (30, Ita)
Netcompany-Ineos
UCI ranking: 70
2026 wins: 5
There may not be an individual time trial at the Tour of Britain for Filippo Ganna to show himself at his best, but the Italian is more than a racer against the clock, as he showed when he won Dwars door Vlaanderen in a sprint finish in April, his biggest one-day win to date. On the tough roads of Britain, who would count him out of a win?
Intriguingly for one of Netcompany-Ineos’s biggest stars of the past decade, Ganna has never raced the Tour of Britain, but as he’s not taking part in the Vuelta a España, he needs somewhere to get the miles in before the World Championships in Canada, where he’ll be targeting the time trial rainbow bands once again. It worked for Remco Evenepoel last year, who finished second at the race a couple of weeks before he headed to Rwanda and demolished all.
Home hopes
(Image credit: Getty Images)
If you’re a British rider, the Tour of Britain is always a major stage and there will be no shortage of homegrown talent ready to strut and fret their respective hours upon it this September.
Evergreen Ben Swift was a former stage winner way back in 2007. This time round he’s more likely to be playing a team captain role within his Netcompany-Ineos team.
National circuit champion Matt Bostock has been having a solid year on the domestic scene and has shown well at the Tour of Britain in the past. He’ll be at home in some of the tight city centre finishes – Lincoln, for example, where he was fifth in the GP race this year.
Ethan Vernon (NSN Cycling) is one of Britain’s foremost sprinters and the winner of the points classification here in 2024, though yet to win a stage here. He’s won four times this season and the TOB undoubtedly offers potential for a fifth.
Alongside Vernon will be teammate Lewis Askey and Jake Stewart. Midlander Askey is a key team rider but could win from a break if the chance arises, while sprinter Stewart is likely to present a tandem approach with Vernon, with the pair supporting each other in the bunch finishes.
Others to watch
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Chasing on the heels of the Tour of Britain’s top GC contenders will be a number of wildcards hoping to make an impression on the grippy British byways. Among the best of these will be one of France’s leading stage racing lights, Kévin Vauquelin of Netcompany-Ineos. The Norman enjoyed a promising start to the season with high placings at the Volta ao Algarve and Paris-Nice. He had high hopes for the Tour de France too, but his home race was ultimately dogged by illness and a badly-timed puncture.
Having recorded a fourth top-10 placing at Paris-Roubaix in April, Nils Politt (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) spent July doing the hard yards in service of his illustrious team-mate Tadej Pogačar. With the Slovenian absent, and lumpy roads that could allow him to fully exploit his big engine, the 32-year-old Classics motor might be free to seek his own stage win glory.
Likewise, France’s Aurélien Paret-Peintre will have the chance to emerge from under the wing of his fêted young team-mate Paul Seixas. The Decathlon CMA CGM rider thrives in the hills and the British tour’s fourth and fifth stages, roving the roads of North Yorkshire and the Scots Borders, could suit him nicely.
The full starting line-up remained mostly under wraps as we went to press. Keep an eye out for others who might take on the main GC favourites or go for stage wins.
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