Great news for Van der Poel and Philipsen - Alpecin on the verge of signing classics and leadout specialist from Arkea

Alpecin-Deceuninck are a full-on classics and sprint team and they may be on the verge of collecting one of the best value riders on the market for their specific goals. Arkéa - B&B Hotels is coming to an end and there is one rider on the market who specializes in support of top classics riders and sprinters such as Mathieu van der Poel and Jasper Philipsen who could come in very handy: Florian Sénéchal.

According to Het Laatste Nieuws the Belgian team is still looking to complete its team and the Frenchman is a priority. The team does not really have a problem at the time being as its development team riders often race for the elite team too creating a much larger block, however with 30 available spots in the World Tour structure, there are still - on paper - 11 spots to fill up. Certainly Alpecin has already renewed with or signed several riders, but the truth is there is a lot of space. Mathieu van der Poel, Jasper Philipsen, Kaden Groves and Tibor del Grosso are all present and will be the leaders in 2026, whilst the team hasn't confirmed the signing of any rider from outside its development program.

Xandro Meurisse, Gianni Vermeersch, QWuinten Hermans, Timo Kielich, Robbe Ghys and Fabio van den Bossche have all departed the tem towards direct rivals including Quick-Step, Visma and Red Bull, and so there is a hunt for new classics talent mainly. On the list is Florian Sénéchal, 32-year old rider who has spent the past two seasons with Arkéa but has not been able to achieve the desired results. He could have a rebirth in the Belgian team as has happened with other riders.

In his prime years with Quick-Step Sénéchal was a leadout man for Fabio Jakobsen, a duo that worked to extensive success. But for himself, he has also had great results in the past with a French national title in 2022, a stage at La Vuelta and the Primus Classic in 2021, and victories in other classics such as the Druivenkoers - Overijse, Le Samyn and runner-up positions at the E3 Saxo Classic and Gent Wevelgem. With Arkéa - B&B Hotels going out of business and the teams already preparing for their 2026 seasons, Sénéchal could also come at a low cost for Alpecin, who are reported to have had a budget of around €27 million in 2024 - around half of UAE Team Emirates - XRG and INEOS Grenadiers.