Jayco AlUla confirms its "exciting and refreshed roster" for 2027, spearheaded by Matthews, Welsford and Plapp
Cycling
Team Jayco AlUla will enter its 16th season in professional peloton. The team which was previously known as Orica GreenEDGE or Mitchelton-Scott has come a long way since, including Simon Yates' Grand Tour victory in 2018. Over that period, one thing never changed - the project's pride in development of Australian cycling. And the spirit will carry on into 2027 as Jayco AlUla confirms its 30-name roster.
In 2026, Jayco AlUla placed 14th in the UCI team ranking with 10,724 UCI points. Even though it's been a steady improvement compared to their 2025 campaign (16th with 8783 points), there was still something left to be desired for the Australian team.
The season kicked off strongly with Mauro Schmid's second place overall at Tour Down Under which Luke Plapp backed up with another podium at UAE Tour.
For the remained of the season, it was mainly the Swissman who made headlines for Jayco AlUla with La Fleche Wallonne runner-up finish and Tour de France stage win, although Anders Foldager stepped into the spotlight with Brabantse Pijl triumph.
Towards the end of the year, Michael Matthews first impressed at the World Championships to take silver medal in national team jersey. And in the final push of the season, Alessandro Covi clinched a Giro del Veneto title.
Michael Matthews on the podium of the 2026 Montreal World Championships
Jayco forced to improvise
With 2918 UCI points scored in 2026, Mauro Schmid's departure to Pinarello Q36.5 therefore comes as a painful blow to Jayco, further amplified by a loss of their GC leader Ben O'Connor (to Decathlon CMA CGM). Jelte Krijnsen, Koen Bouwman, Luke Durbridge (after Australian Championships), Asbjorn Hellemose, Luka Mezgec (retires), Rudy Porter and Jasha Sütterlin are also on their way out.
As for replacements, sprinter Sam Welsford, all-rounder Mikkel Honoré and MBH Bank Ballan Telecom Fort revelation Alessandro Fancellu bring the most optimism into immediate future. Furthermore, a group of young riders join the team - Ugo Fabries, Adam Rafferty, Ben Wiggins, Jed Smithson and Wil Holmes. Track Olympic champion Oliver Bleddyn rounds off the list of 30 names for 2027.
"It’s an exciting and refreshed roster for the 2027 season. Although we will lose some experience and leadership with guys like Luke Durbridge and Luka Mezgec retiring, I am sure others will step up, and we will see some fresh new faces making their mark on the season," said Head of Performance Gene Bates in a press release.
Sam Welsford as a 'star signing'
For Jayco, it'll be important to find a good chemistry between its two sprinter aces Pascal Ackermann and the new-comer Sam Welsford. The former track rider's biggest weakness over the years emerged to be his engine - ability to reach the sprint finales at all.
Still, Jayco are optimistic the Australian can bring some nice victories - ideally already at the home Tour Down Under where he's always found success. "Having Welsford joining the team will add another element of excitement and create some new goals for the squad in 2027."
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Jayco will also bet on their current riders, as many of their leaders have been plagued by health complications this past season. If Michael Matthews or Andrea Vendrame can avoid those in 2027, they will immediately become key players in several races.
"It will also be great to see what riders like Michael Matthews, Andrea Vendrame, Amaury Capiot and Mikkel Honoré can do, being back to full health, with a new season and unfulfilled goals to chase," Bates concludes.
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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- 18 broken bones. 78 crashes, among 30 rider per year is a lot. so for a rider over 15 seasons, they will break their bones 7-8 times and crash 38 times.abstractengineer04-11-2026
- i dont think he is ready ot win against the top 2 or the 2nd rung of evenepoel, del toro , Almeida. In the third week in the TDF he was very very defensive, no attacks. i think he was exhausted. right now he needs time not the brutal Giro or the intense TDF.abstractengineer04-11-2026
- Rota is an excellent rider to get in a break with because he always does his turnchapmanesque04-11-2026
- That 3000 extra that the Tour de France is built up in the flat stages
Rafionain-Glas04-11-2026 - maybe this is something else they can protest in the streets of France.mij04-11-2026
- his Roubaix win was amazing. not to take anything away from him - arguably one of MVDP's wins was at the expense of a WVA flat - but so many things need to line up to get one of these. He had a perfect race with fewer bike issues on an attritional course. And crazy strong as usual. Glad he got this done.mij04-11-2026
- Orts was a super smart signing with the new rules regarding cross and UCI pointsmij04-11-2026
- yeah... you're right...PogiSloFans04-11-2026
- Podcast sounds great. Two so called experts stating the f*cking obvious.wrsty04-11-2026
- A mindset that reminds me of Tim Declerq. I loved watching that guy just pound away the kilometers, hours at the front, holding an entire breakaway in check on his own. Bjerg seems like a similar guy. Curling, the team sport.RidesHills04-11-2026
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