UAE Tour 2026: preview of stage 1 to Liwa Palace - serious crosswind chance in opening stage
The UAE Tour 2026 kicks off on Monday, February 16th with a flat stage through Abu Dhabi. Will we see a typical sprinter’s stage and a victory for top favorite Jonathan Milan? He will have to withstand the wind, as a strong northwesterly breeze may very well cause echelons. WielerFlits looks ahead!
Route
In the first stage from Al Dhafra Walk Madinat Zayed to Liwa Palace, the fast men will have their say, although we remain cautious. There is always a chance of echelons in the Emirates. For the first roughly fifty kilometers, the peloton will ride on wide and straight roads. Once past the first intermediate sprint in Liwa, the riders enter a more open dune area.
The opening stage is certainly not flat as a billiard table. After the first intermediate sprint, there are constant ups and downs, but is it challenging enough to unsettle the sprinter teams? Once they reach Moreeb Dune, the peloton will tackle the Moreeb Dune path twice more. This is a bike path just over eighteen kilometers long on challenging roads.
Afterwards, the peloton returns to Liwa, this time for the finish. The final straight favors the strong sprinters, as it climbs at about 5%. Last year, Jonathan Milan was the fastest on this same finish.
Classifications
Favorites
Can anyone challenge Jonathan Milan in the sprint stages of this UAE Tour? Initially, the organizers hoped for a duel between Milan and Tim Merlier in the United Arab Emirates, but due to a knee injury, the Belgian top sprinter is currently sidelined. Milan has already recorded two wins this year; in the AlUla Tour, the Lidl-Trek leader took victory in two mass sprints.
However, Milan’s perfect score hasn’t come yet, as he was beaten once in the AlUla Tour. In the fourth stage, his compatriot Matteo Malucelli was faster, and the XDS Astana sprinter is also present in this UAE Tour. A real speedster who is definitely dangerous in flat finales.
There are few true top sprinters at the start, but riders who have already won this year will be present. Erlend Blikra (Uno-X Mobility) and Sebastian Molano (UAE Emirates XRG) have won in the Tour of Oman, and Sam Welsford (INEOS Grenadiers) took a win last month at the Tour Down Under. Representing Belgium, Alberto Dainese (Soudal Quick-Step) and Gerben Thijssen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) will want to seize their opportunities.
Casper van Uden is the card for Picnic PostNL, and in the absence of Olav Kooij, Cees Bol and Gianluca Pollefliet have their chance for Decathlon CMA CGM.
Weather and TV
The temperature in Abu Dhabi on Monday will rise to 27 degrees Celsius under a bright sun, but beware: it will be windy in that region of Abu Dhabi. The wind will blow at force 4 to 5 from a (west-)northwest direction. Given that the route mostly heads south and in the finale even turns north, echelons are seriously on the cards.
