"If we get him racing again, that in itself is a success" - Max Poole's racing return in 2026 doesn't seem likely anymore
Cycling
There's no denying that Team Picnic PostNL finds themselves in a very unpleasant situation in the UCI ranking, barely clinging onto a top-30 spot. And their poor luck goes beyond just sports merit as their supposed main star Max Poole has raced for a whole one week this season before being struck by an illness which has not allowed the 23-year-old Brit to pin on race numbers since.
Alongside Oscar Onley, Poole formed a promising British GC duo at the Dutch team last year. Before Onley rose to a stand-out 4th place at Tour de France, Poole paved his way with an 11th place at Giro d'Italia. Picnic's future seemed secured, however Onley left to Netcompany INEOS at the end of the year despite running contract, leaving Poole as Picnic's only GC ambition... and he hasn't raced since February.
According to Matt Winston, Poole is struggling with the same problem as last year. "The virus (Epstein-Barr, ed.) he has requires a long recovery time. Every body reacts differently to it," the sports director explains to WielerFlits.
"Our team doctors, as well as other experts in this field, say that no timeline can be attached to it. You can't say: it always takes four weeks or always six months. That varies from person to person."
"Two steps forward, one step back"
It is precisely that unpredictability that makes the road back complicated. "You can start building up and then reach a point where you almost hit a limit. Then you have to ease off the gas again. Two steps forward, one step back," Winston describes the process.
By the end of April, it seemed as though Poole's return would come already at the start of summer with Giro d'Italia start among possibilties, but nothing panned out. Poole run into yet another setback caused by this persistent virus, and his preparation reset back to square one.
"Every day is different. We have to keep building him up calmly and, above all, not force anything, because that doesn't help," emphasizes Winston. "We hope, and Max hopes so himself too, that he might be able to ride a few races at the end of the season. For example, in October. But that is still very uncertain."
In any case, such a start would be mainly about getting back the racing rhythm and not much more. "We do not expect Max to get back into race condition this year. It would be more about working towards such a race and then giving it a try. That can be good for his mind and his body. But if it doesn't work, we won't force anything."
Team Picnic PostNL is in a state of disarray
Right now, the focus therefore isn't immediately on making Poole the UCI points machine Picnic would need him to be. Above all, it's necessary to build Poole back up with view to the future. Ideally, the patience will pay off with many productive years in the future.
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"Sometimes it might be easy to cut corners and put a band-aid on it. That might work for a month or two, but then you’re back at square one. That is why it is important that we do this in the right way and according to the right process. Max’s long-term recovery is the most important thing."
"To race again will be a success"
"If we get him racing again, that in itself is a success," Winston continues. "We absolutely do not expect him to fly immediately."
"He is a young guy who just wants to race. That makes it very difficult. He also gets asked constantly: when are you coming back, how are things going? As a young athlete who wants nothing more than to race, that is frustrating. Especially because he is very talented."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Rubbing is racing.
santiagobenites06-11-2026 - Throws an elbow, but crashes afterwards and he's upset.
Front24206-11-2026 - There should be nothing but praise for them: 1. Trying to make things safer, and 2. Trying something "new".acem8206-11-2026
- And a bit of a malcontent on top of it all that doesn’t help.mij06-11-2026
- Hopefully it was just a particularly bad year!Lozza05-11-2026
- He has the Twin combo of being vulnerable to germs and prone to crashes on top of not heeding the complaints from his body. Thats just crash and burn career.abstractengineer05-11-2026
- You can't complete a journey without taking next step. He has to do that or start looking for another job. I hope he can get his act together. It's a make or break next season for him. I wish him well.Cyclingsbestfan05-11-2026
- does anyone really think he is taking a next step?mij05-11-2026
- in the team’s defense, Bernal is 29. when he won his first TdF people were talking about him winning a record # of GTs. Where would they be if that crash had never happened. I’m not saying he would compete with Tadej, but he did podium Strade Bianche, and certainly could have won a GT that Tadej wasn’t in.mij05-11-2026
- "c'mon Jonas!"wrsty05-11-2026
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