CYCLING MARKET | Is INEOS going to be able to 'steal' Tour de France breakout star; Roglic stays with BORA
Cycling
Over the past few days the cycling market has not moved as fast as in the previous week, but with the end of the Vuelta a Espana, a few more riders have shown strong performances that have earned them new contracts, whilst also gathering attention from rival teams.
Signings
Four high-levels have been confirmed this week with Movistar taking the big slice as they unveiled some of the work from their negotiations team over the past few months. The Spanish team has signed Roger Adrià from Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, Raul García Pierna (Arkéa - B&B Hotels) and Juan Pedro López from Lidl-Trek.
These are also the first confirmed signings of the team, who continues to have many of its riders without a contract for next year, at least of what is publicly known. There have been heavy rumours that Juan Sebastián Molano will be signed from UAE whilst Fernando Gaviria is on his way out, whilst the likes of Nairo Quintana, Ruben Guerreiro, Nelson Oliveira and Will Barta are also not renewed as of yet. Gregor Mühlberger is highly likely to leave towards Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale.
In the women's peloton we also have the move of Sofia Bertizzolo from UAE Team ADQ to FDJ-Suez, which will provide the French team with another sprinter and leader to shed off pressure from Demi Vollering.
Juan Pedro López is amongst those Movistar has signed into 2026. @Sirotti
Rumours
A few rumours that had been developing over the past few weeks seem to have had their closeure. Ciro Scognamiglio of Gazzetta dello Sport has argued that Primoz Roglic's departure from Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe is not on the table, and that simultaneously Biniam Girmay's transfer to Israel - Premier Tech has been confirmed by several sources, with only the announcement pending.
The big news of the week also comes from the Italian journalist who reports that INEOS Grenadiers is still seeking to sign Oscar Onley. This comes as no surprise, despite the Scottish climber being signed with Team Picnic PostNL until 2027. In the past, many of its leaders broke contract with the Dutch team, whilst the modern trend of contract breakings amongst big leaders make it even more plausible that a move could still happen this year.
Onley has not only been one of the breakthroughs, but one of the stars of the season, finishing on the Top5 of the Tour Down Under, UAE Tour, Tour de Suisse (where he beat João Almeida in a summit finish) and then a fourth place at the Tour de France, not only teasing but immediately confirming his potential as a Grand Tour contender and immediately with a top result at age 22. Recently, he has also finished fourth at the Tour of Britain and will be one of the contenders for a medal at the Kigali World Championships.
It is said that a transfer is still possible, but it's undeniable that there is interest, as was the case with Remco Evenepoel, although in that case there was also no public admission of the attempt to sign the Olympic Champion who eventually broke his contract to join Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe instead.
Contract Extensions
There have been lots of confirmations of leaders staying in their respective teams for next year, including Cofidis who have established a strong position for their future with the renewal of both Bryan Coquard and Benjamin Thomas. Fellow French team TotalEnergies also renewed into the 2026 season, confirming the team's stability into next year despite its title sponsor now partnering with INEOS Grenadiers.
EF Education-EasyPost have extended with Kasper Asgreen for one more year, Team Jayco AlUla extended with his compatriot Christopher Juul-Jensen, and lastly Caja Rural - Seguros RGA have secured their brightest talent in Spanish time-trial champion Abel Balderstone, who has had a breakthrough Vuelta a España and is set to finish in 13th place, with a Top10 on the Angliru to show for.
Daniel Benson reported that UAE Team Emirates - XRG is likely to renew with Julius Johansen into the 2026 season, whilst in a similar role, Julien Vermote will not be staying with Team Visma | Lease a Bike after a lackluster year.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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