Tour de France 2026 Route stage 12: Magny-Cours – Chalon-sur-Saône

Thursday, 16 July - At 179.1 kilometres, the Tour de France stage between Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours and Chalon-sur-Saône looks set to favour the sprinters once again. Or will the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy, some 20 kilometres from the finish, spoil the party for the fast men?

Last updated on 13 July 2026: weather forecast added

Suited to: sprinters
Key note: who will succeed Groenewegen?

The Circuit of Magny-Cours is best known as the place where David Coulthard famously raised his middle finger at Michael Schumacher during the 2000 Formula 1 Grand Prix, frustrated by the German’s driving tactics. Four years later, Schumacher had the last laugh, beating Fernando Alonso at the same circuit thanks to an audacious four-stop pit strategy.

This time, however, there will be no roaring F1 engines at Magny-Cours, but rather the whirr of the world’s best cyclists. Just as in March 2025, when the team time trial of Paris–Nice started here. Team Visma | Lease a Bike turned out on top, thay day.

From the circuit, the riders head east. As in the previous stage, the peloton crosses the Loire at Decize, before continuing via Montceau-les-Mines and the southern edge of the Morvan Natural Park to the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy. Could this 2.6-kilometre climb at 3.9% help the breakaway stay clear of the chasing peloton?

Probably not. A struggling sprinter or two may lose contact on the climb, but they’ll still have nearly 20 kilometres to regain contact with the speeding bunch.

From the Côte de Montagny-lès-Buxy, the riders descend into the valley of the Saône before the finish line awaits in the streets of Chalon.

Dylan Groenewegen is the last Tour de France stage winner in Chalon-sur-Saône. The Dutchman outgunned Caleb Ewan and Peter Sagan in 2019. Other past winners include Thierry Marie (1988), Rik Van Linden (1975), Jean Stablinski (1961) and Brian Robinson (1959).

Fancy riding the route yourself? Download GPX 12th stage 2026 Tour de France.

Stage 12 of the Tour de France gets under way at 13:30 and the race is expected to finish around 17:40 - both local times (CEST). For details, see the timings in the slideshow.

Another interesting read: favourites to win in Chalon-sur-Saône.

Weather forecast:
The temperatures will remain high, but the riders are expected to spend much of stage 12 riding in the rain. So the good news is that they won't have to empty any more bidons over the backs of their necks to cool down. When timing their sprint in Chalon-sur-Saône, the fast men will need to take the headwind into account.

Start: 34°C, rain, easterly wind (10 km/h)
Finish: 35°C, sunny, north-easterly wind (15 km/h)

We'll update the weather forecast on the morning of the stage. For the current weather conditions along the route, click on the corresponding icons on the interactive weather map in the slideshow below this article.