"Every ending is also a new beginning" - Former World Tour pro calls an end to his career after eight years near the top
Cycling
Matteo Badilatti is calling an end to his career as a professional cyclist. The Swiss rider has spent plenty years racing at the top level, and has raced for the final time in the peloton at the Italian Autumn classics.
"After more than eight years in professional cycling, the time has come to close an important chapter of my life," the Swiss rider wrote. "It is difficult to sum up in just a few lines everything this journey has meant to me".
Badilatti turned professional in 2018 with Team Voralberg, and the following year moved into the Israel Cycling Academy - currently named NSN Cycling Team, after the team's license was bought out by a separate entity. Badilatti spent two years in the Israeli team, two at Groupama - FDJ; and the final four seasons at Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team.
"Cycling has taken me far, allowing me to discover places, people, and worlds I would never have otherwise encountered. It has put me to the test, teaching me to confront my own limits—fatigue, defeat, and expectations—but, above all, to confront myself. It has brought me a range of emotions, victories, and disappointments, but most importantly, it has led to encounters and lessons that I will carry with me forever".
In his palmarès lies one stage win, taken at the 2023 Tour du Rwanda. But the Swiss rider's worth was not described by the amount of wins, but the amount of work he has done over the years. "It has taught me that behind every result lies much more than just a number or a ranking: there are difficult days, sacrifices, doubts, crashes, comebacks, and that enduring will to keep pedaling—on and on".
Matteo Badilatti is ending his career in 2026
Badilatti, a reliable workhorse
In 2020 and 2021 the 34-year old took part in the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España, and since then, he has spent his years working for his leaders. A climber and classics specialist, he was first signed as a rider able to lead at Pinarello back in 2023 - where he was Top5 at the Tour of Turkey and Sibiu Cycling Tour.
In recent years, he's teamed up with Tom Pidcock quite a few times, including this month. "Today, I look back on these years with pride, but above all with deep gratitude toward my family and friends, who stood by me through both the good times and the most challenging ones; toward my teammates, the management, the entire support staff, the sponsors, and everyone who, in one way or another, played a part in this journey".
With the transfer market on the move, Pinarello has already signed close to a dozen riders and reinforced itself significantly into 2026. "Thank you for believing in me, for supporting me, and for sharing this path with me. Without you, none of this would have been possible—and, more importantly, this journey would not have been the same".
"And if the road I’ve traveled so far has taught me anything, it’s that every ending is also a new beginning: the start of a new adventure just waiting to be discovered," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
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.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- He can take his dumb a$$ politics somehwere else !frieders318-10-2026
- good to have her back. fingers crossed she‘ll be able to stay!Ketterechts17-10-2026
- A tenner and he wins the Tour next year, too 😂anonymouscyclist17-10-2026
- the answer is either stick to classics or GTs but not bothabstractengineer17-10-2026
- the exodus already stared with Ciccone. Already they were struggling with two sprinters, now there are three. Also Ganna will demand leadership. Gall is the most proven GC, Ayuso has the most potential. GC leadership for everybody will be impossible. Literally a UAE style mess without pogi.abstractengineer17-10-2026
- I raced as an amateur for 12 years, including six years on my country’s national road cycling team. I secured two national titles and competed in three World Championships plus more than 15 international stage races. At 23, we travelled to Italy for a training camp—or so I assumed. On a rest day, we watched a presentation about adopting a more “professional” training approach. It was crystal clear what “professional” meant. That moment first exposed me to this dilemma. After returning from Italy, I left cycling—at least at the competitive level I had known. Over the following two years, the whole team was caught doping. I hold that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. In my view, current stakeholders operate on a different scale, and the sums involved are vast. I am unsure whether any doping would ever be revealed. I try to stay positive and enjoy the show. My 2c.
vannpelt17-10-2026 - Fiver he wins 🤣
leedorney17-10-2026 - “…measures to reduce speeds.” Might as well shorten the race course to just 50km as well? ASO generates at minimum €300m a year and 30- 40% profit. Maybe stop being greedy and spend more of the profit to protect the riders instead.b3tlla17-10-2026
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