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We posted the report from the race organizer with the results.
Here's the report from race winner Remco Evenepoel's Team Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe:
Remco Evenepoel claimed a record-breaking fourth victory at the Clásica San Sebastián after an impressive comeback and a perfectly executed finale.
The team controlled much of the 221 kilometre classic, keeping the early breakaway within reach as the race approached its decisive sequence of climbs. Maxim Van Gils moved into the front group on the Jaizkibel, giving the team an important presence ahead of the Erlaitz.

Remco Evenepoel wins the 2026 Clasica San Sebastian. Sirotti photo
However, Evenepoel’s race was suddenly thrown into doubt when he suffered a puncture on the descent from the Jaizkibel, around 50 kilometres from the finish. With the steep Erlaitz approaching quickly, he was forced to stop for a change, and begin the chase back towards the front of the race.
Giulio Pellizzari supported the chase at the foot of the Erlaitz, while Van Gils remained patient in the leading group. Evenepoel eventually completed the comeback, reconnecting with the front of the race.
Once the groups had come back together, Van Gils returned to the front and helped position Evenepoel for the final ascent of the Murgil. On the steepest section of the 2.1-kilometre climb, Evenepoel launched his decisive attack with 8.7 kilometres remaining. Only Richard Carapaz could follow.
The pair reached the summit together and maintained their advantage on the descent and the run into San Sebastián. In the finishing straight, Evenepoel accelerated past Carapaz in the sprint to secure the victory.
The result makes him the sole record holder at the Clásica San Sebastián. After previous victories in 2019, 2022 and 2023, he has now won the race in each of his four appearances, moving ahead of three-time winner Marino Lejarreta.
Remco Evenepoel: “It was the most difficult one of all four. After the downhill of Jaizkibel, I had a flat tire. We knew that Erlaitz was coming up super quickly, so I had to be patient. I have to thank my team for all the work, of course. Giulio Pellizzari did a very good job at the bottom of Erlaitz to bring me as close as possible, and Maxim was being patient in the front waiting for me. In the end, I had to finish off the work of my teammates. What a day and another beautiful victory.”
Here's the San Sebastian Classic report from third-place Ben Tulett's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:
Team Visma | Lease a Bike was on the attack from start to finish in the Clásica San Sebastián. Tim Rex animated the race with a long breakaway, Louis Barré launched an attack later in the race, and Ben Tulett capped off the team's strong performance with an impressive third place. Remco Evenepoel claimed victory.

Team Visma | Lease a Bike being presented during the opening ceremonies.
On the hilly Basque course, an early breakaway formed shortly after the start. Tim Rex was alert and made it into the decisive move. The Belgian spent the entire day working strongly at the front and, together with his fellow escapees, held off the peloton for a long time over the succession of iconic Basque climbs. Later in the finale, Barré and Tulett tried to stay clear of a chasing group, but they were only caught inside the final meters.
Team Visma | Lease a Bike animated the race throughout the day. Barré launched an attack in the finale, putting pressure on his rivals and forcing the other favourites to respond. His aggressive move ensured the team remained at the forefront of the action. Teammate Ben Tulett looked back with satisfaction on the team's collective performance.
"It was great to see that Louis had really strong legs today and anticipated the race. Matteo also came out of the Tour de France in good shape, so I think we can be very pleased with our performance today."
The decisive selection was eventually made on the final climbs. Tulett proved to be one of the strongest riders of the day and managed to hold his place in the leading group. In the sprint for the podium, the Brit rounded off the team's strong display by finishing third. "We came here with a really strong team, and after a long build-up period I was curious to see how my body would respond today. I think we got a good confirmation."
"It's a one-day WorldTour Classic, so of course we always want to fight for the best possible result. Today, I think we achieved the best result that was possible with third place," Tulett concluded.
Here's the report from fifth-place Pello Bilbao's Team Bahrain Victorious:
Pello Bilbao came within touching distance of the podium in his final appearance at the Clasica San Sebastian, finishing fifth and receiving the award as the race’s best Basque rider.
Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull–BORA) made history by becoming the first rider to win the race four times, beating Richard Carapaz (EF Education) in a two-up sprint at the finish in San Sebastian. Ben Tulett (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) completed the podium.
The 221.1-kilometre route featured more than 4,150 metres of climbing, with the race gradually splitting over the final climbs. Evenepoel and Carapaz moved clear on Murgil Tontorra, while Bilbao remained in contention behind and sprinted to fifth place.
Jakob Omrzel also delivered a promising performance on his debut at the Basque Classic, remaining in the front group deep into the finale.

The sprint for third place, won by Ben Tulett. Sirotti photo
After the finish, Bilbao was honoured by the race organisers alongside Ion Izagirre (Cofidis) and Bauke Mollema (Lidl-Trek), with all three riders making their final appearance at the Clasica San Sebastian before retiring at the end of the season.
Pello Bilbao said:
“Incredible to be so close to the podium today. I came here with zero expectations, simply wanting to enjoy the day, knowing it would be my last opportunity to race this very special event for me, and with the idea of helping Jakob, who is coming through so strongly. We raced well and we raced smart. On many occasions, we had to come from behind rather than being among the strongest, but we were racing at home and with a special energy. By surviving, hanging on and never giving up, I was even able to come from behind again on the final climb.
"I didn’t really know what position we were fighting for, but it didn’t matter. I was only thinking about producing my best sprint, fighting all the way and entering the final corner in a good position. In the end, finishing so close to the podium was a bit frustrating in the moment, but we exceeded expectations, at least from my side. I’m happy, and it’s another step forward in my preparation for the Vuelta.”
Sports Director Enrico Gasparotto was pleased with the way the team raced and praised both Bilbao and Omrzel for their performances. He added:
“I think we’re coming home with a good result, which was our goal today. For Jakob, it was his first experience in such a hard one-day race, and I think he did really well. He even tried to go for the podium with around two kilometres to go, but Visma didn’t let him get away.
"I’m also really happy with Pello’s performance in his last dance here in San Sebastian, in front of his home fans. Before the race, he had some doubts about his legs and his condition, but Pello is a super clever rider. He never wastes energy for nothing, and on a day like today, with more than 4,000 metres of climbing, experience makes a huge difference.
"That’s why I think Pello did a great job. I think he’s happy with today’s result, even if finishing so close to the podium leaves a slightly bitter feeling. For me, it was a really strong performance from our guys. They did exactly what we talked about in last night’s meeting, and they did everything right.”
Jan Christen's UAE Team Emirates-XRG posted this report:
Racing the Clásica San Sebastián on Saturday afternoon, Jan Christen rode to seventh place for UAE Team Emirates-XRG. Last year’s runner-up was unable to match his best result, but still showed plenty of fight across more than 4,000m of elevation gain.
Clásica San Sebastián, with its incessant climbing, always delivers an action-packed day in the saddle, and the 2026 edition proved no different. A large breakaway went from the gun, but the battle for the win was reserved for the final 65km of the 221.2km-long route.
It was Jay Vine who was first to make his move for UAE Team Emirates-XRG, with the returning Australian attacking from the peloton on the Jaizkibel climb. The Aussie climber quickly got a gap of 20 seconds ahead of the pack, but was ultimately brought back on the next, and toughest, climb of the day.
On the punishing slopes of Erlaitz, UAE Team Emirates-XRG rallied its troops, with Igor Arrieta proving particularly selfless in support of his teammates. Thanks to the Spaniard’s efforts, the main peloton was at the head of the race with just the Murgil (2.1km at 10.1%) to go.

The race gets started.
Jan Christen began to show his face on the final climb of the day, with the Swiss national champion bursting from the front, and looking to follow all the right moves. So too did Christen’s teammate Kevin Vermaerke, with both riders remaining well positioned over the summit.
Putting their Tour de France form to good use, though, were Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education-EasyPost). The pair went clear of their rivals on the Murgil climb, and did not look back.
At the finish in San Sebastián, Evenepoel out-sprinted Carapaz to take his fourth Clásica San Sebastián title, with the group of Christen and Vermaerke sprinting it out for the third place on the podium. In the end, it was seventh place for Christen, with Vermaerke finishing just outside of the top 10.
Vermaerke will now look to carry his form into Sunday’s Circuito de Getxo, whilst Christen will head with his teammates Benoît Cosnefroy and Jhonatan Narváez to the Tour de Pologne.
Christen: “For sure, I am happy with the form but I wish we could have got a top result today. We started the race with a really strong team and unfortunately, the right moves didn’t come for us. But, I felt strong, and in the end, we were only the second group at the finish.
“We know how strong Remco [Evenepoel] is, and Carapaz coming from the Tour, but we felt confident of being able to give them a tough race today. That is what we did, with Jay making a nice move, and later, the rest of us showed ourselves. In the end, it wasn’t good enough for the podium, but I am confident now for the Tour de Pologne, where hopefully the team can continue this momentum.”
And here's the San Sebastian Classic report from Clément Braz Afonso's Team Groupama-FDJ United:
Less than a week after the Tour de France, Clément Braz Afonso proved on Saturday at the San Sebastian Klasikoa that he still had something left in the tank. After coming through a highly selective race in the Basque Country, the young Frenchman tackled the day’s final climb alongside the favourites before finding himself in contention for a podium spot in the closing straight. In the reduced sprint, he eventually crossed the line in fourteenth place, securing his best result in a WorldTour Classic.

Team Groupama-FDJ United is presented before the race start. Sirotti photo
While the overwhelming favourite, Remco Evenepoel, was indeed coming straight from the Tour de France, much of the peloton looked very different from the one seen on the Grande Boucle. Groupama-FDJ United lined up with only two riders who had finished on the Champs-Élysées six days earlier: Quentin Pacher and Clément Braz Afonso. Together with their five teammates, they faced the race’s characteristically demanding route: 220 kilometres, more than 4,000 metres of climbing, and, above all, the brutal climbs of Erlaitz (4 km at 11%) and Murgil Tontorra (2 km at 10%), which were expected to decide the outcome over the final 50 kilometres.
“We know the race has become much harder and more selective since this new course was introduced, and that was once again the case today,” explained Philippe Mauduit. A succession of climbs during the opening half of the race gradually wore the peloton down before the riders crossed the iconic, but now less decisive, Jaizkibel with just over sixty kilometres remaining. The decisive battle then unfolded on the slopes of Erlaitz, where Clément Braz Afonso fought to stay with the strongest riders for as long as possible.
He came over the summit around thirty seconds behind the leaders, together with a group of roughly ten riders. “The race changed a little because of Remco Evenepoel’s mechanical issue,” Philippe continued. “Clément was caught by Remco at the top, and then that entire group made it back to the front thanks, it has to be said, to the Belgian’s effort. Even so, it was already a very good sign to be there because there were only around fifteen riders ahead at that point.”
By the time the riders crossed the finish line in San Sebastián for the penultimate time, more than thirty competitors had regrouped at the front. The leading group remained together until the foot of the final climb, Murgil Tontorra, ten kilometres from the finish, before Remco Evenepoel shattered the race with an attack one kilometre from the summit. Riding in the third chase group, Clément Braz Afonso kept pushing and eventually bridged across to the first group of chasers after the descent. As the riders entered the finishing straight, the young Frenchman was therefore still battling for third place, albeit against faster finishers on paper. “It was really good to have Clément in that group,” Philippe added. “He placed 14th eventually. It might not sound spectacular, but having a rider finish in the top fifteen of such a strong field is a significant result.”
Just six days after completing his very first Tour de France, where he took part in numerous breakaways and claimed eighth place in Belfort and fifteenth at Alpe d’Huez, Clément Braz Afonso once again demonstrated remarkable consistency. In fact, only five of the top twenty finishers in San Sebastián had also completed this year’s Tour.
“When you come out of the Tour, San Sebastián is all or nothing,” Philippe concluded. “Either you haven’t recovered properly and you simply can’t get going during the race, or, on the contrary, you get stronger as the kilometres go by and find yourself in the final. That’s what happened to Evenepoel and Carapaz, who finished first and second, but also to Clément. Even so, since this course was introduced, we know it’s usually difficult for riders coming straight from the Tour. So what Clément achieved today is a really impressive performance. He’s now heading into a well-deserved rest period, while about half of the squad here will travel next to the Vuelta a Burgos.”