Mark Cavendish is set to take to the start of the Giro d'Italia this week, but nevertheless the Briton's mind is on the Tour de France where he is still hoping to be at this summer, in order to try and beat the stage-win record of Eddy Merckx.
In an interview with Eurosport UK, Cavendish has affirmed that "there's some people who want Fabio [Jakobsen] to go to the Tour, so I don't go to the Tour, not fore Fabio to go and win in the Tour; for sure there is." He went on to clear that this is a small group of people: "Don't get me wrong, like we've talked about before it's a very small demographic, it's that small demographic that does the biggest thing in your shoulder."
"Whoever goes... Every of the 30 riders in our team will be glued, screaming to the TV, you can guarantee that," he added. At the time being Fabio Jakobsen is on the shortlist for the Tour, having returned to cycling last year to become one of the most dominant sprinters in the peloton. This year the Dutchman has shown no signs of stopping, with six wins to his name early on in the season where he displayed his dominance. Part of that success is due to the Belgian team's lead-out specialization, in which Jakobsen is likely to have the support of Michael Morkov and Florian Sénéchal as main support for the sprints.
Struggling to explain his line of thought, Cavendish added that "somebody else's narrative that isn't there (doesn't exist), it pisses me off in a way, and I rather not talk about it," he concluded. With the support of Michael Morkov, alongside Davide Ballerini and Bert van Lerberghe, Cavendish will have a luxury lead-out in Italy this month where he will be a favourite for several stages.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
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.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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