Friendship over with the Classics, now Grand Tour season is my best friend. At long last we’re back in the big time with the longest races of them all, starting with La Vuelta Femenina, which kicks off this weekend.
The headlines this time around are that firstly there’s no Demi Vollering. The Dutch star normally wins this race but she’s opted for the Giro this year instead, so the red jersey battle is wide open. It’ll go right down to the wire too, with the race to be decided with two summit finishes to end the week, and more specifically the finale is the frankly terrifying Alto de l’Angliru, which kicks off a year of monster climbs deciding the women’s Grand Tours (with the Finestre and Ventoux on the way). The super-steep slopes of the Angliru bring something we’re not used to seeing the women’s peloton tackle, so who knows how this is going to go?
With that in mind, the blundest minds in cycling media have boshed their heads together and attempted to predict the four La Vuelta Femenina jersey winners as well as one extra bonus treat. Be sure to tell us both how terrible they are and what your own predictions are.
Pete Muir, editor
Cyclist top dog Pete scored a respectable 8/15 on his predictions in 2025, including 4/5 at the men’s Tour de France, but he didn’t submit predictions for the Tour de France Femmes, so can you trust these forecasts?
GC: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon-SRAM-Zondacrypto)
Without a win so far this year, but oh so close on so many occasions, Niewiadoma-Phinney will know that Demi Vollering’s absence represents the best chance this season for her to take that extra step up to the top of the podium.
Green: Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike)
At 38 years old (39 in a couple of weeks), the GOAT continues to defy all conventional ideas of how time works. A second place at Roubaix this year shows she’s still got the form, and she has won the points jersey at the Vuelta for the last three years. There’s nothing to suggest she won’t do the same again this year.
Mountains: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney
Sometimes the best way to pick a mountains winner is to put on a blindfold and throw a dart at a printout of the start list. But history suggests that the winner of the Vuelta often scoops up the mountains jersey along the way, so I’ll take the easy option and say Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney for this one as well.
White: Imogen Wolff (Visma-Lease a Bike)
There’s no equivalent of a Paul Seixas wünderkind in the women’s peloton, so the white jersey should be a very open battle. As such, I’ll stick my money on Visma-Lease a Bike’s British rider Imogen Wolff, just out of blind patriotism.
Bonus prediction: The dream crusher
Almost everything that happens for seven stages will be rendered irrelevant by the final 12km climb up the slopes of the Alto de l’Angliru. Hitting 23% at one point, but generally sadistic for most of its length, the Angliru will take the GC standings and stick them in a blender.
Robyn Davidson, web writer
Robyn got a well-earned promotion this year, but not for her prediction abilities – she scored 4/15 in 2025, so I’d avoid placing bets on these picks.
GC: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney
Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney has looked incredibly strong this year, but unfortunately for her, Demi Vollering has had a little bit more in the tank (aside from the Amstel Gold Race). Vollering is missing the Vuelta this year so it’s Niewiadoma-Phinney’s time to shine for what should be a second Grand Tour victory following the Tour back in 2024. This has been her least successful of the bigger races – with an 11th place in 2025 and 10th in 2023 – but she has stepped things up another level this season and there’s no reason why she shouldn’t be top step of the podium.
Green: Marianne Vos
Marianne Vos has had the points classification at the Vuelta on lock since 2023. She’s been experiencing a decent 2026 with a second place at Paris-Roubaix, sixth at Trofeo Alfredo Binda and seventh at Strade Bianche, and her dominance in this category shouldn’t change. It’s Marianne Vos, after all.
Mountains: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney
Is this predictable? Yes, probably. Sorry. But under Demi Vollering’s two-year reign, the Dutchwoman has topped both the general classification and the mountains one too. The race is decided on the steeper gradients, and that shouldn’t change with the arrival of the Angliru, which should be absolutely spectacular viewing. Pack those climbing legs, Kasia.
Youth: Marion Bunel* (Visma-Lease a Bike)
The Frenchwoman had an exceptional 2025 with a podium at the Volta a Catalunya, second place at the Tour de l’Avenir Femmes and fifth place in the U23 road race at the World Championships after a monumental shift to help fellow countrywoman Célia Gery to victory.
Her best result at that year’s Vuelta came in the form of a seventh place on Stage 5 – the summit finish on Lagunas de Neila – and it’ll be interesting to see her develop in the shadow of leader Pauline Ferrand-Prévot. Oh, and she’s only 21.
Note: Robyn submitted her predictions believing, and rightly so, that the young riders’ classification cut off was a sensible age, alas 21-year-old Marion Bunel is a couple of months too old to qualify, but I’ve left her prediction in so she can take some pride if Bunel does well.
Bonus prediction: What will UAE Team ADQ get up to?
It’s no secret that UAE Team ADQ have really been lighting the afterburners so far this season. Their current lineup for the Vuelta includes two-time Tour de France Femmes stage winner Maëva Squiban, Amstel Gold Race winner Paula Blasi, Trofeo Alfredo Binda victor Karlijn Swinkels and legendary 42-year-old Mavi García, who finished on the podium of the women’s elite road race at last year’s World Championships. They could really cook here. Will it be Michelin star standard?
Martin James, production editor
GC: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney (Canyon-Sram Zondacrypto)
Am I going with the obvious favourite? Yes. Is this just a guess? Yes. But there’s a reason for both, and it’s those pesky dozen or so kilometres at the end of the final stage, also known as the Alto de l’Angliru. It’s a truly fearsome climb, literally uncharted territory in women’s Grand Tour racing, and given the largely benign (at least by comparison) parcours leading up to that point, the race will likely go into the climb with everything still on the table in terms of the GC before things are blown to pieces on those 20%-plus ramps. In other words, nobody really knows what’s going to happen. But Kasia will (probably) win.
Green: Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike)
The evergreen (see what I did there?) Vos is showing now signs of slowing down (there too) despite turning 39 four days after the Vuelta reaches its lofty conclusion on the Angliru. After a strong spring Classics programme, she has the form and the team to be in consistent contention throughout the opening five stages, even if the organisers have officially classed four of the five as ‘hilly’. Vos has won two (road) stages and the green jersey every year since 2023. Sounds about right.
Mountains: Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney
It’s kinda obvious that unless a professional mountains jersey hunter hoovers up all the points along the way, whichever GC contender gets to the top of the Angliru will probably win the mountains prize. So…
Youth: Marion Bunel*
Bunel brings solid if unspectacular form into the Vuelta but she’s clearly one to watch for the future, and as a more than decent climber she’ll have as good a chance as any of the young pretenders on the decisive final weekend.
*I told Martin about Bunel being too old for this category, but he didn’t change his selection. That’s Bank Holiday Brain. He gets my respect if nothing else.
Bonus prediction: Enjoying the whole race
It’s not a prediction as such, but how good will it be to see decent coverage for women’s cycling for a change? I mean, that’s ignoring the fact that none of it is free, but that’s a bigger conversation with no real upside at the moment. But it’s something at least.
Will Strickson, website editor
OK fine, I went 4/20 in 2026 – what was I smoking? But the reality is I’m generally trying to not pick the same as everyone else, especially if, like now, I’m the last one selecting, so when everyone else picks the obvious answers I’m taking my chances at an upset. It’s worth noting for the true ball knowers, I was the only one to get Nienke Vinke for the Tour white jersey in 2025, and the only one to predict Niewiadoma-Phinney to win the Tour in 2024.
GC: Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime)
Last year was the turn of Ferrand-Prévot to make her big splashy comeback, this time around it’s going to be Anna van der Breggen that finally hits back in a big race. She’s been getting better and better as the season has gone on, with ninth, fifth and fourth in the Ardennes showing she’s climbing as well as anyone in this race, and I think her experience and her incredibly strong team – with added mountain superdomestiques in Valentina Cavallar and Nienke Vinke – will help take her to the top spot on the Angliru.
Green: Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime)
A lot of people are writing off SD Worx – outside of Lorena Wiebes – and yes they haven’t been as dominant as previous years but that’s mainly because the gap is closing as everyone else gets better. Vos is clearly not unbeatable and this Vuelta has several punchy finishes where Kopecky can get the better of her.
Mountains: Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike)
Tricky one this, I’ve made the calculations and I think there are 32 points on offer for the two summit finishes (the race regulations don’t mention double points) and 58 for all the other climbs. It’s possible for a breakaway rider to win, but they’ll have to be so consistent throughout the race to make up for inevitably missing out on the two big ones. I also don’t foresee Van der Breggen winning on Les Praeres, so a more consistent finisher over the two big mountains will come out with the polka dots. I expect a small group finish on Les Praeres where Pauline Ferrand-Prévot has the best kick to take the stage, and then she’ll come second or third on the Angliru to wrap this up.
Youth: Lore De Schepper (AG Insurance-Soudal)
The qualification for this youth classification are very tight. It’s only riders born on or after 1st January 2005 (Marianne Vos first won the elite World Championships in 2006 for reference), meaning there aren’t many to choose from. With a couple of teams yet to confirm their full lineups I can confirm with zero doubt in my mind that Belgian rider Lore De Schepper is going to breeze to this title. De Schepper finished fourth at last year’s Tour de l’Avenir and the three in front of her are either not here or are Marion Bunel, who as we know is too old for this. She’s in good form in 2026 with a pair of 18th places at Flèche and Liège, and it’s likely she won’t be needed on domestique duties with the nature of this route.
Bonus prediction:
I’ve very nearly predicted the whole race in these four predictions but with one final one required, I’m going to use this spot to say that Liv AlUla Jayco’s Monica Trinca Colonel will podium this race overall with Van der Breggen and Ferrand-Prévot .
Ewan Wilson, staff writer
Ewan is currently carb-loading for a big shift at the Traka 200 on Saturday (good luck Ewan), so understandably didn’t get time to make his picks for this, and having gone 7/20 last year you’re probably not missing out on his predictions, especially considering he went out of his way to say Ferrand-Prevot wouldn’t even top ten the Tour. Oopsie. Anyway I’d imagine his picks would’ve been Niewiadoma-Phinney for GC and mountains, Vos for green, Vinke for youth (even though she’s not eligible) and his bonus would be a Noemi Rüegg stage win.