Mikel Landa has been training on the roads of Álava, splitting time between Amurrio, where he lives with his wife and children, and Murgia, where his parents and brother reside during the holiday season. After five weeks off, the Basque rider has already joined preseason training camps, spending time along the Alicante coast to take advantage of the good weather.
He has planned to start the 2026 season at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, followed by the Volta a Catalunya and likely the Itzulia Basque Country. His marquee events will be the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France.
At the Giro, Landa will lead the Soudal–Quick-Step team, but the Belgian squad also intends to bring sprinters to compete for stage wins. Following Remco Evenepoel’s move to Bora–Hansgrohe, the team is refocusing on its classics heritage and accumulating victories throughout the year without a single charismatic leader dictating the rhythm. Landa will compete in both the Italian Grand Tour and the French one.
The rider from Álava is eager to return to winning ways. He hasn’t tasted victory since 2021 and is desperate to raise his arms again. He came close during the Vuelta a España in a stage that was shortened on the fly but couldn’t clinch it. A crash at the Giro in Albania derailed his 2025 season, limiting him to just 45 racing days all year. That allowed him to arrive fresher at the end of the season and he will begin 2026 with more energy.
Landa has no immediate plans to retire. He has one more year on his contract, and if Soudal sees fit, he will renew and keep racing as long as his body holds up and he remains competitive. It’s no secret that, at some point, a Plan B could see him return to the orange jersey of Euskaltel–Euskadi to end his career there. But as long as UCI World Tour offers come in, he will prioritize those.
