"I can get much more out of this than from the road offers I received": Belgian pro switches to gravel to secure his future

Jens Reynders is one of the riders who have not been able to secure a contract for the upcoming season. The 27-year-old was part of the Wagner Bazin WB team, a Franco-Belgian Professional squad that underwent a major restructuring and stepped down from ProTeam to Continental level for the 2026 season. Reynders was not renewed, and he was also unable to find a new team.

As a result, the Belgian has decided to switch his focus to gravel racing, even if not ruling out occasional appearances on the road. The first appointment in his new chapter is approaching quickly. “I’m leaving for Dubai on 15 January,” he said to Wieler Verhaal. “I’ll be at the start of the Al Salam Championship on 18 January.”

There is a great season for that. “That race is only for invited professionals. Tim Wellens finished second there last year. There is a huge amount of prize money to be won, AED 3.5 million (around €800,000), which is quite a lot.”

After that, he is then expected to ride the Sharjah Tour. The key question remains: in which jersey? “At the moment I can’t say anything about that,” he replied enigmatically. "It’s a team that is very ambitious and that could offer many future opportunities. I think it could turn into a surprising team over time."

The road to this new beginning has been marked by significant obstacles. After a stressful period earlier in his career when he had to leave Israel - Premier Tech in 2023, 2024 appeared to signal an upward trajectory. That changed in the summer of 2025. “I was in talks with a number of WorldTour teams,” Reynders explained.

He handled the negotiations himself, without an agent, but then misfortune struck. He suffered a knee fracture, sustained during the Kemmel criterium, which came at the worst possible moment “In mid-July I broke my knee. Everything collapsed, because everyone waited to see what would happen. That was a difficult period for me, because I was almost back at my best and ready to peak for the Renewi Tour. I only had a training camp left, and then I would have been ready.”

Uncertainty on the transfer market, compounded by merger talks between Lotto and Intermarché, completed the picture. “In the end there were a few offers, but they weren’t what I had hoped for.”

Instead of accepting a worse offer, Reynders decided to look elsewhere. And the rapidly growing gravel scene offered an interesting alternative. “I knew there were opportunities in gravel. Several major bike brands are starting their own teams, following the example of Ridley last year. I found that interesting, because I’ve always performed very well in gravel races.”

Reynders will become a full-time professional gravel rider, supported by his own sponsors, targeting the most important gravel events. “I think, financially, I can get much more out of this than from the road offers I received,” he argued.

This is far from the end of his career, but quite the opposite. “I’m still very ambitious. My best years are still to come, my peak is still ahead. I can feel it in training, I’m getting stronger and stronger,” he concluded.