As fans continue to count down the days until the 2023 Vuelta a Espana kicks off, Team DSM-Firmenich have become the latest team to unveil their lineup as they look to chase stage wins.
In years gone by, Romain Bardet would have entered the Vuelta as one of the favourites for overall victory in the general classification. This time around however, the Frenchman has outlined his plan to opt for a stage-hunting strategy.
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The likes of British duo Oscar Onley and Max Poole will also be dangerous riders in mountainous breakaways with Italian sprinter Alberto Dainese the man for the flat stages Team DSM-Firmenich will be backing. Completing the lineup are Romain Combaud, Sean Flynn, Chris Hamilton and Lorenzo Milesi.
“We’re looking forward to starting the final Grand Tour of the year at the Vuelta a España. We have a nice balance of experience in our line-up with four of our guys making their three-week debut which will be an important step in their development," says coach Phil West. "Sportive wise, our main goal will be to search for our opportunities over the 21 days, hunting for stage results on the mixed terrain; with chances in the mountains and hilly days for our climbers, while our rouleurs will play their cards on the rolling terrain, and of course we have the sprints as well."
"With our line-up we are also looking to the future with our young GC talents; using it as an opportunity to learn from our more experienced riders on how to ride GC in a three-week race, which will be an invaluable experience for the coming years. As for the route, there is something for everyone throughout the three weeks with sprint stages, hilly breakaway days, and challenging days in the mountains with some famous and brutally tough climbs. As a team, we are really motivated after some nice team camps and good recent racing, and we’re excited to pin on our numbers again in Barcelona,” West concludes.
Team DSM-Firmenich for the Vuelta a Espana:
Romain Bardet, Oscar Onley, Max Poole, Alberto Dainese, Romain Combaud, Sean Flynn, Chris Hamilton and Lorenzo Milesi.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
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Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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It's almost time for @lavuelta to 𝘬𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘧𝘧 in Barcelona 🇪🇸⚽️ 🇫🇷 @romainbardet 🇫🇷 Romain Combaud 🇮🇹 @alberto_dainese 🇬🇧 @seanf1ynn 🇦🇺 @ChrisHamo_ 🇮🇹 Lorenzo Milesi 🇬🇧 @OscarOnley 🇬🇧 Max Poole We're ready to chase our goals and attack those #LaVuelta23 stages! 💯
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