Race organisers have labelled the 2026 Santos Tour Down Under the "toughest on record", adding a third ascent of Willunga Hill and replacing the traditional flat finale with a hilly circuit around Stirling that keeps the general classification open until the final lap.
The 26th edition of Australia's WorldTour stage race runs from January 20 to 25, covering 758.9km across a prologue and five road stages. The route differs from recent editions, which have often favoured puncheurs and opportunistic sprinters, with more sustained climbing and a greater emphasis on team depth.
Defending champion Jhonatan Narváez returns with UAE Team Emirates-XRG, but faces a redesigned course and a home challenge from Ben O'Connor and Luke Plapp at Team Jayco AlUla.
Route Overview
The 2026 parcours distributes its difficulty across multiple days rather than concentrating everything on a single summit finish. Two clear sprint opportunities remain on Stage 1 and Stage 3, but the prologue's road-bike restriction, the double ascent of Corkscrew Road on Stage 2, and the repeated Stirling loops on Stage 5 are likely to make it harder for pure sprinters to remain in contention for the ochre jersey.
Organisers said the final two days are designed to make it harder for an early leader to defend a small advantage through conservative riding.
Race Stages
6 Stages • 758.9km total
| Stage | Date | Route | Distance | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Jan 20 | Adelaide - Adelaide (Victoria Park) | 3.6 km | Prologue |
| 1 | Jan 21 | Tanunda - Tanuda | 120.6 km | Road Stage |
| 2 | Jan 22 | Norwood - Uraidla | 148.1 km | Road Stage |
| 3 | Jan 23 | Henley Beach - Nairne | 140.8 km | Road Stage |
| 4 | Jan 24 | Brighton - Willunga Hill | 176 km | Road Stage |
| 5 | Jan 25 | Stirling | 169.8 km | Road Stage |
Key Stages
Prologue – Victoria Park, 3.6km
Returning for the first time since 2023, this short effort around Adelaide's Victoria Park will be contested on standard road bikes rather than time trial setups. The restriction narrows equipment gaps and places greater emphasis on technical handling and raw explosive power, favouring all-rounders over time trial specialists.
Stage 1 - Tanunda to Tanunda, 120.6km
The first stage takes the race into the Barossa, with a largely flat route favouring the sprinters. Starting and finishing on Murray Street in Tanunda, the 120.6km stage features an early ascent of Menglers Hill before looping through vineyards and nearby Lyndoch. With few late obstacles, the finale is expected to be controlled by sprinters’ teams as leadout trains form for a fast finish.
Stage 2 – Norwood to Uraidla, 148.1km
Two ascents of Corkscrew Road, a 2.4km climb averaging 9.7% with sharper ramps near the summit, are expected to significantly reduce the field of GC contenders early. Non-climbers could fall out of GC contention before the race reaches its halfway point, increasing the importance of team positioning on the descents for protecting leaders.
Stage 3 – Henley Beach to Nairne, 140.8km
The second sprint opportunity takes the race from Adelaide's coastline into the Hills, though Wickham Hill at McLaren Flat complicates matters early. This category one ascent averages 7% over 3km with ramps touching 11%, arriving after just 32km and testing whether sprint teams can keep their leaders in contact.
The middle section rolls through Meadows and Strathalbyn before a second intermediate sprint at Echunga and the category three Summit Road climb at Mount Barker. A 19km finishing loop north of Nairne adds late undulations before the bunch returns for a main street finish that should suit sprinters who survived Wickham Hill's selection.
Stage 4 – Brighton to Willunga Hill, 176km
The Queen stage sends the peloton three times up Willunga Hill, a 3km climb averaging around 7.5%, for the first time in race history. The cumulative fatigue from repeated efforts on the same gradient is expected to produce some of the largest time gaps of the week and to play a major role in shaping the overall standings before the final day.
Stage 5 – Stirling Circuit, 169.8km
Eight laps around Stirling replace the traditional Adelaide criterium-style finale. The 2km drag to the finish line averages 4% but features ramps up to 11%, providing a platform for late attacks. A narrow lead established on Willunga could become vulnerable to coordinated team efforts across the repeated circuits.
GC Contenders
The harder route has attracted a field weighted towards climbing credentials rather than fast finishes.
Jhonatan Narváez (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) returns as defending champion with a squad capable of controlling the race across multiple terrain types. His punchy acceleration and ability to contest reduced-bunch sprints make him well-suited to the Stirling finale, though he will need to limit losses on the third Willunga ascent against pure climbers.
Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) provides UAE with a second leadership option for the mountainous stages. His Grand Tour pedigree suggests he could take over GC duties if Narváez struggles on the extended climbing, giving the team additional tactical flexibility.
Ben O'Connor (Team Jayco AlUla) leads Australia's WorldTour squad and is targeting his first overall victory at home. His climbing endurance has been a strength on similar long efforts, while Jayco are expected to tackle the Stirling circuits with fewer established climbers than UAE.
Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) finished on the podium in 2025 and returns as a GC option for his team. The New Zealander's steady climbing pace suits the accumulated fatigue of the new route.
Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Intermarché) has emerged as a GC contender at shorter stage races, and the Corkscrew and Willunga profiles match his aggressive climbing style.
Sprint Opportunities
Stage 1 to Tanunda and Stage 3 to Nairne offer the clearest chances for pure sprinters, though the hillier overall route has seen several fast men skip the race in favour of European preparation.
Sam Welsford (Ineos Grenadiers) has dominated recent TDU sprints with six stage wins across the last two editions. This marks his first race in Ineos colours, and his team will look to deliver him on the flatter days while managing resources for GC ambitions elsewhere.
Matthew Brennan (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) broke through in 2025 and will challenge Welsford as a lead sprinter capable of surviving rolling terrain better than most pure speedsters.
Conditions and Safety
Historical TDU heat remains a significant factor. Weather reports showed temperatures exceeding 40°C earlier in January, though conditions have since moderated to the mid-to-high 20s. If extreme heat returns, the UCI's Extreme Weather Protocol could trigger earlier start times or shortened stages.
According to race organisers, stages will be cancelled if the Country Fire Service issues a "Catastrophic" fire danger rating, a contingency that reflects the heightened bushfire risk across South Australia in recent summers.
Heat management may favour riders acclimatised to Australian conditions, potentially giving O'Connor, Plapp and Welsford a physiological advantage over European-based rivals arriving from winter training camps.
What to Watch
The shift from a single Willunga decider to a Willunga-plus-Stirling double test is likely to alter team tactics. A rider leading by ten seconds after Stage 4 may find it difficult to defend on the final day; the eight Stirling laps offer multiple opportunities for rivals to attack in coordination.
UAE's depth of options – Narváez, Yates, and potentially Jay Vine – allows them to test Jayco repeatedly across the circuits. O'Connor and Plapp may need to race as a unit rather than marking each other if they want to limit UAE's control of the finale.
As the first WorldTour race of the season, results are hard to forecast, but given last year's dominance we expect the winner to come from UAE, with Narváez the clear pretender to the throne.
Cover image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
