Madis Mihkels could replace Kaden Groves as Alpecin's number two sprinter
CyclingSaturday, 25 July 2026 at 09:00
Alpecin-Premier Tech traditionally don't rank among the most active teams on the transfer market, often preferring to stick to their own development programme rather than spending a lot of money to bring leaders from outside. But Madis Mihkels might be an exception.
The Estonian sprinter emerges as a possible candidate to replace Kaden Groves (headed for Tudor Pro Cycling) as the Belgian team's second sprinter option. That role will be highly contested in 2027 with the expected arrival of former Giro d'Italia stage winner Casper van Uden.
At the age of 23, Mihkels has gradually established himself as one of the peloton's most reliable riders for both bunch sprints and the cobbled classics.
The former Estonian champion has three professional victories to his name, several top-10 sprint results across his three Grand Tour participations, a top-10 result from 2024 Paris-Roubaix, and even a European bronze medal from the same season.
Read also
Mihkels was always recognized as a big talent, however his junior career was cut short by covid, allowing Mihkels to accumulate only 10 UCI starts in 2021 - a season finished with a bronze medal at junior World Championships.
Following this, he has been scouted by Intermarché - Wanty where he first enrolled as a stagiare in 2022, and later turned professional in 2023.
The young rider continued to steadily progress through the team's ranks, but when his contract run out at the end of 2024, he opted for a new adventure at EF Education-EasyPost.
Racing for the American outfit, Mihkels did not enjoy any further breakthrough with Classic Brugge-De Panne podium and national title the two most outstanding results. Without a strong sprint train at EF, Mihkels often had to manage on his own in stage finales. That shouldn't be the case anymore at strongly sprint-oriented Alpecin-Premier Tech where, according to WielerFlits, Mihkels agreed to a two-year contract.
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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- A rider even more easy to dislike than armstrong or Jasper Philipsen.
Andrew25-07-2026 - Guy in white is the problem.PaulB8tson25-07-2026
- His main problem is his attitude. He was visibly angry when he crossed the line, just ahead the incredible Carapaz.Hills3325-07-2026
- If you wheel suck all the way then you have no reason to complainabstractengineer25-07-2026
- nobody is refusing tests, everybody is asking about the threshold to test between 11 pm to 6am. Strong evidence that will result in a positive test. that is the bar. Why coz disrupting sleep will affect performance badly. It goes against the spirit and rules. I expect Jonas and Pogi to test positiveabstractengineer25-07-2026
- I heard a gossip that Pogi wakes up every morning thinking about: "Who can I give a stage win today? ... He gave it to DelToro, Remco, Carapaz and maybe now it's time for Seixas or Martinez. It's gift-giving time, Christmas bells are ringing early this year :))mus-musculuspeedypogigonzales25-07-2026
- people will do everything to discredit his performances but good for him for showing the haters wrong after everyone saying he'd be dropped first mountain stage and that DT and seixas would destroy himbruins3025-07-2026
- that's not what he said . . .mij25-07-2026
- You didn't deserve it Lenny, you just let kuss and carapaz do all the job but you want to reap their hard work rewardZamorano25-07-2026
- If he could have stayed with Pogačar he could have come around Carapaz. And if he had contributed earlier in the climb it’s possible the trio would have made it to the finish without being caught. As it is, a solid second on a brutal day.RidesHills25-07-2026
Loading
Write a comment