"I really want to get my hands in the air and I want to win": Fred Wright goes all-out to end his drought this spring

The first big test of the rebuilt Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling awaits this weekend, with the pair of Belgian Classics; the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne. The Swiss team's previous two participations were more of a learning curve with no stand-out results, but the 2026 edition has to be different. This time, Tom Pidcock is not "alone" as old friend Fred Wright adds the necessary firepower to fight for a top result, if not a victory.

Heading into his first Classics campaign with the new team, Wright made a radical change to his preparation, adding a block of altitude training. His performance in Andalucía gave a reason for subtle optimism, but Saturday's race will be a real trial by fire: "It's something that I've always wanted to try and do, to see if it works doing altitude before the Classics.
So yeah, now I've done it, I am looking forward to putting the legs to good use," the 26-year-old told Domestique.

Wright doesn't make it a secret that 2025 Vuelta a Espana podium finisher Tom Pidcock played a major role in his decision to join Pinarello Q36.5. Together, they aspire to enjoy racing, besides the obvious results: "Tom sort of said to me like, 'it would be nice to race like we did when we were younger as juniors', and I think that kind of idea of also enjoying it is key," Wright explained.

"It’s hard to describe, but yeah, I think I needed a new environment to find the real enjoyment of racing. I didn’t have the best year in 2024, but last year was really good. I started really enjoying racing at the back end of the season, and here’s a great environment to continue that."

Despite his reputation of a strong racer, Fred Wright only got to celebrate one professional victory over the course of his career - the sweet national title in 2023. With Bahrain - Victorious, it simply didn't click to be, well, victorious, for Wright. That's why the purpose of his transfer to a "smaller" team is to relive the winning feeling.

"I said to Kurt [Bogaerts, sports director] straight away that I really want to get my hands in the air and I want to win," revealed Wright. "You know, it's great being top 10 in these big races, but you've also got to be realistic about beating the top top guys, it’s not easy."

"So I think to go into those races with more confidence, it would be nice to sort of pick up a win in some sort of smaller races. That’s a goal of mine this year, just to get the hands into the air and get that feeling, and take it with confidence into the real big races."

The hardest part is always to reach the level at which you can, even accidentally, end up in the mix for victory. But with top-10 finishes at all; Tour of Flanders, Milano-Sanremo and Paris-Roubaix, it's clear that Wright falls in that category. Thus now it's only about nailing the little extra to have an upper hand in decisive moments.

"I really want to try, especially the Classics, as that's the most important part of my season, to be more consistent. Last year, I wasn’t quite as consistent as I wanted to be. I’d love to be able to race and be up there in every one that I start," said Wright.

"There are a lot of factors that you can’t control, but in terms of physical ability, I’d love to be able to sort of nail the preparation, so for each one, I’m firing on all cylinders, so that’s a big goal of mine I would like to get right. Because it's difficult to get right," he concludes.