"I hope to be a rider for the GC": 'The Next Jonas Vingegaard' shines at Tour of Guangxi

At 19, Denmark's Peter Oxenberg is beginning to establish himself as one of the most promising young riders in the international peloton. Compared from the beginning with Jonas Vingegaard, Oxenberg has followed a similar trajectory: both rode for the ColoQuick team, both challenged the mythical Coll de Rates in Alicante, and now, both are part of the elite of world cycling.

It was precisely after setting an outstanding time on that climb, a regular training stage for professionals, that Øxenberg caught the attention of the big teams. Although Tadej Pogacar later beat that record during a training camp with UAE Team Emirates, the young Dane already had his future secured: in June 2024 he joined INEOS Grenadiers.

Despite his move to the WorldTour team, Oxenberg opted to gain experience during 2025 at the Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank development formation, following the new partnership agreement with INEOS. "It's been a pretty smooth transition. I've been working with all the INEOS staff and racing in the Lotto Kern-Haus team to gain more experience, and it's been good for me, yes," Øxenberg explained.

During the season he competed in races such as the Baby Giro, the Vuelta a Burgos and the Tour de l'Avenir, where he finished ninth overall, behind talents such as Paul Seixas and Jarno Widar. "It was clear that this was the step I would take, and at the end of the summer it came to fruition. It was already planned from the start of the season, and then I had the longer goal of l'Avenir, after which I would make the jump," the young Dane detailed.

Already a part of the main team, Oxenberg showed his ability during the Tour of Guangxi. On the second stage, he broke into the day's breakaway and managed to wear the polka dot jersey as leader of the mountains classification.

"The first part, flat and rainy, it was more like Denmark, you know? It was raining all the time, so it was good. Then the hilly part suits me better, so I felt better," he told the media in Jingxi, the finish city of second stage.

"It's very important for me to wear a jersey. This is my third WorldTour race, and I just made the jump, so I'm very excited to be the leader of the mountains classification and to be in the polka dot jersey."

Currently in fourth place overall, behind only the sprinters, Oxenberg hopes to stay in the fight for the mountains jersey and even climb positions in the general classification during the tougher stages in China. "And why not go for it until the end, right? Maybe I can get into more breakaways to score more mountain points," he added ambitiously.

Aware of the leap it takes to compete in the WorldTour, Oxenberg admits that the change of pace has been demanding: "It's quite a big step, but it's been good. There's quite a difference because here in the WorldTour peloton you go a lot faster compared to the U23s. I have to get used to it, but it's fine," he said.

Although he currently considers himself a puncheur and climber, Oxenberg makes no secret of his long-term aspirations: "Right now, I'm probably a puncheur-climber type, but I hope to be a rider for the overall. It's a matter of time and experience, and maybe it's just a matter of getting a little older and gaining more strength to get there."