Castellón Grand Prix 2026
Spanish Classic (Castellón – Onda, 171.7 km):
Slovak cyclist Lukáš Kubiš entered the new season by placing on the podium. At the classic Gran Premio Castellón, he took 3rd place.
The rider of the Unibet Rose Rockets team managed both difficult climbs on the route to the city of Onda (Collado de Ayódar peaked 11 km before the finish, note) and in the final sprint fought for the second professional triumph of his career.
In the end, however, the Australian Michael Matthews (Jayco AlUla) had the most strength in the end, who won for the first time since May of last year. At that time, he did not find a defeater at the German classic Eschborn-Frankfurt.
Between him and Kubiš, the 25-year-old Spaniard Pau Miquel, for whom it was the competitive debut in the World Tour Bahrain – Victorious team, still squeezed in.
Matthews took his second win in the classic, which has only been running for three years. Apart from the stage winner from all three Grand Tours, only António Morgado from the UAE Emirates was able to succeed in the Valencia region.
VIDEO: Cut from the Gran Premio Castellón 2026 race
“After the crash at the Camp de Morvedre classic on Friday, the first part of the race was a challenge, but after that I felt better and better. The team believed in our chances to win and worked hard all day and went full throttle.
We had the race under control for most of the day and at the end there were three of us – Andrea Vendrame, Davide De Pretto and myself – who could fight for the victory.
I was in good shape at the end and I’m very happy to win this race again,” Matthews told the Australian team’s official website.
Kubiš should next appear on Thursday, January 29 at the Trofeo Ses Salines race, then at the classics in France, and he should also not miss the so-called on the opening weekend of the big spring classics.
Also thanks to his performance last year, the Unibet Rose Rockets team received a free card to participate in the events Omloop Nieuwsblad and Kuurne – Brussels – Kuurne, where Kubiš finished sixth and ninth last year.
