"I wanted more from the season" - Injuries hamper Oscar Onley during his first full year at INEOS
Cycling
Oscar Onley has finished his first full season at Netcompany INEOS this Saturday with a 14th place at Il Lombardia. The British rider was signed to be a leader and he showed a very high level during his second half of the season, but health issues have hampered him throughout a year where expectations were very high.
“The first half definitely wasn’t how I wanted it to go. A lot of it I couldn’t control. I got injured or sick a couple of times, which kind of affected things," Onley admitted ahead of Il Lombardia, as reported by Domestique.
Onley was fourth at the Volta ao Algarve, but then had to abandon Paris-Nice ill. At the Tour de Romandie he was also forced to abandon on the second race day; whilst at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes he was affected by a heavy crash that led to the injuries that kept him away from the Tour de France. Luck was not on the side of the Scottish rider, who nevertheless had some months to try and make up for his lack of results.
“But then from the summer, it’s gone better," he said. He was second at the Vuelta a Burgos and was able to win a stage; and later on won the youth classification at the Vuelta a España - finishing sixth in the overall classification.
"I still wasn’t fully satisfied with my Vuelta. Again, I had a couple of crashes there, which affected me more than I thought I did, looking back. I feel really good in the team. That didn’t take long to fit in and learn everything there. I’m satisfied, but I wanted more from the season.”
Oscar Onley finished his season at Il Lombardia
INEOS support key for Onley
Netcompany INEOS took a big gamble by paying a sum of several million to buy out Onley's contract at Team Picnic PostNL. After a fourth place at the 2025 Tour de France, his potential is incredibly high.
At INEOS, he found what he was looking for. “I think the support I have in the team here, with the riders and also all the staff and everything around the team as well, it’s something that can really bring me up a level".
But despite being 23, Onley knows perfectly not to expect a year with setbacks. “It’s very rare you have a perfect season. I think looking back, last year was as good as it kind of gets in terms of the lack of setbacks. I think I’ve learned a lot this year in how to kind of manage myself and the calendar I do, and I think also how to manage myself during these Grand Tours as well".
Read also
Onley gains experience for Grand Tours
Whilst unexpected, his run at the Vuelta a España provided him with important experience. It was his first in the INEOS structure, but above all provided him with another learning opportunity throughout three weeks as he contested with some of the world's best - in an environment where he hadn't done it before.
“Like I had some sickness in the first week and then the crash in the second week. It’s about learning how to recover during a Grand Tour, which is something that’s, well, very hard to do, but there’s definitely ways you can kind of help your body as much as possible. There’s definitely a lot of lessons," he concluded.
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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.
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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)...
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- I think he does or goes to whichever team gives him the scope to become the rider everyone thinks he'll be when Tadej stops.. that simpleslappers6612-10-2026
- I remember at one time he was mentioned in the same breath as Seixas. no more. Onley has a lot of work to do to be deserving of that.mij12-10-2026
- I hope he goes to Bahrain-Victorious to mentor Jakob
Rafionain-Glas12-10-2026 - I hope he stays! Cycling is more fun with Primoz, even if he is not winning.mij12-10-2026
- yes for sure, there will be more chances for him at Euro than Lombardia. I wonder if that emotion wasn't also because he knows he has now been eclipsed by a younger rider w/o his goals being checked off. At least when Seixas over takes Tadej someday, Tadej will have accomplished his major goals. He still has Roubaix left, but Seixas isn't a threat there. And he should find a year to get Vuelta. Remco now is behind at least 2 riders w/o ever having won a Tour, one monument to his name, and the next few World Championships are not Remco friendly. I would still take Remco's wins though!!!mij12-10-2026
- Remco was at 100%. He raced as expected: 15th best on the climbs and then best in the sprint of the chasing group. Exactly what he did at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where he was on similar form. His win in Amstel was comparable to Quebec or the EurosRafionain-Glas12-10-2026
- "inside the tent pissing out" is an idiom based on a quote from President Lyndon Johnson. Not sure if you're saying you don't understand the term. The full phrase is "it's probably better to have him inside the tent pissing out, than outside the tent pissing in."wrsty12-10-2026
- Pissing out?? Who is forcing them? They can follow Ayuso's example. And they can be leaders on another team. Ayuso's example again. :)MajorPayne12-10-2026
- Hmm it's an interesting take with certain disclaimers e.g. comparing them at the same age (Pogi wasn't given chances so early in his career so we will never know), the level of the competitors in the race or tour (really hard to compare, as you would be looking at multiple competitors, let alone comparing just Seixas vs Pogi). In any case, Seixas' future certainly looks very bright, especially as he has the advantage of youth, access to new scientific knowledge/methods that weren't around when Pogi started, and most importantly has Pogi as an extremely good example to aspire to (e.g. copying training methods, nutrition, tactics, race craft, etc., to list just a few...).Pogboom12-10-2026
- > He’s so much better than Pogacar was at 20 years old It does not mean NOTHING. What is important how long you can be at the top. Most of the best riders are (really) good for 4-5 years (Alaphilippe, Sagan), of course outside this window you can win stages etc. but forget about GC winner in main tours. Talents like Pogacar (in case of GC) or MvdP (monuments or CX - 15 years being on top!!!) are rarity. It might be that if you start being good fast, you end up being good still young.averagecyclist12-10-2026
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