Tadej Pogačar won Liège-Bastogne-Liège for the fourth time on Sunday, dropping 19-year-old Paul Seixas on the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons to claim his third consecutive edition of La Doyenne. The victory equals him with Alejandro Valverde and Moreno Argentin on the all-time wins list. Only Eddy Merckx stands above him — five wins to Pogačar’s four.
The race was decided 13.9 kilometres from the line. Pogačar attacked from the very base of the Roche-aux-Faucons, a climb he knows intimately, and Seixas answered — at first. Halfway up, the Slovenian’s seated tempo proved simply too much. The young Frenchman cracked. It was over.
How the Race Unfolded
The 112th edition was chaotic almost immediately. A crash just 3km in split the peloton and allowed a large breakaway to form — Remco Evenepoel and teammate Nico Denz among the instigators. Having Evenepoel in a move alongside riders like Magnus Cort and a representative working for Guillaume Martin was a calculated gamble: avoid burning matches in the bunch, arrive at the climbs with fresh legs. Denz drove from the front, and the group’s advantage peaked at four minutes after 84km.
Behind, Decathlon CMA CGM — without a single rider in the break — were first to give chase, joined by UAE Team Emirates-XRG. With 155km remaining the gap stood at 2:40. Tom Pidcock’s race fell apart at the 113km-to-go mark, when a mechanical forced a bike change at precisely the moment UAE accelerated. He was a minute adrift immediately and never saw the peloton again.
The break was absorbed with 82km remaining. From there UAE took full control, Pavel Sivakov and Domen Novak setting a relentless pace into the final climbs. On the Côte de la Redoute — 35km to go — the elastic finally snapped. Evenepoel was dropped before Pogačar had even launched his first real acceleration. Only Seixas, winner of La Flèche Wallonne just days earlier, could follow.
Seixas Pushes the World Champion to His Limit
For the first time since 2021, Pogačar had genuine company on the road to Liège. Seixas tracked every acceleration over the Redoute summit, and the pair collaborated to open a gap of nearly one minute on the chasers — making it clear the win was between just the two of them. Behind, lone pursuer Mattias Skjelmose had 25 seconds to make up before eventually drifting back to the chase group.
“On La Redoute, I was really going deep and I could see that [Seixas] was a little bit on the elastic, but on the top he came next to me. I was really impressed. In my head I was already preparing to do a dual sprint, because he was so strong. I tried on Roche-aux-Faucons, I did my pace and I know the climb super well — luckily he dropped.” — Tadej Pogačar
Seixas finished 45 seconds back. It was a remarkable ride for a 19-year-old who had been bidding to become the youngest winner of the Ardennes classic in over a century — and the first Frenchman to win since Bernard Hinault, 43 years ago.
Evenepoel Salvages the Podium
Evenepoel’s early-break gamble didn’t pay off on the final climbs. Dropped by Benoît Cosnefroy before Pogačar’s Redoute acceleration, he faded into the large chase group but had enough left to sprint clear of it for third, finishing nearly two minutes down. A podium, yes — but the race confirmed the gap between him and Pogačar in this format remains wide.
A Monument Record and a Poignant Tribute
The win was Pogačar’s 13th Monument victory, moving him within six of Merckx’s all-time record of 19. His 2026 Classics campaign — Strade Bianche, Milan-Sanremo, Tour of Flanders, second at Paris-Roubaix behind Wout van Aert, and now Liège — is one of the most dominant springs the sport has seen in the modern era.
At the finish, he raised a finger to the sky. It was a tribute to Cristian Camilo Muñoz, the Colombian UAE rider who passed away on Friday following a recent crash. Pogačar had worn a black armband throughout the race.
“It’s incredible to win one of the greatest races for the fourth time. I don’t race much, so the pressure to deliver is high. I’m therefore very happy it worked out, and I couldn’t be prouder of the team.” — Tadej Pogačar
What’s Next
The Spring Classics are done. For Seixas, the immediate question is whether Decathlon CMA CGM will hand him a Tour de France start — a decision expected within days. Teammate Oliver Naesen has publicly backed the move, calling Seixas “the only one capable of following” Pogačar. If the team sends him, it may be his last chance to start without the full weight of expectation on his shoulders. Pogačar, for his part, now turns toward the Tour de France and a bid for a third consecutive yellow jersey.
Result — Liège-Bastogne-Liège, April 26, 2026
1. Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG)
2. Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) +0:45
3. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) +1:55 (approx.)
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