"Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert ... We want to start attacking them too" - BORA and it's new classics team ready to hit big in 2025
Cycling
Red Bull began to sponsor the 'Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe' team and alongside it came a huge financial boost. First to sign Primoz Roglic, but this winter the team prioritized the classics riders and in what way. The German team has a completely new and talented classics block and is looking to challenge Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert this spring.
"We have invested in what we believe are the stars of the future in one-day work. Also, the one-day events are now within reach, and we want to win despite the big competition," Rolf Aldag said in a press conference, as reported by In de Leiderstrui. "Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert... We want to start attacking them too".
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We could even go as far as saying that BORA was the team with the best transfers' season. They have signed promising Italian climber Giulio Pellizzari and his compatriot Gianni Moscon who will be a valuable experienced domestique; the trio of Jan Tratnik, Tim and Mick van Dijke from the Visma team; Maxim van Gils, Laurence Pithie, Oier Lazkano and Finn Fisher-Black. Every single transfer is a high-level one, and the team has signed leaders from other teams, simultaneously weakening them. Now they look to put these pieces together to attack the biggest stars of the classics.
"We want to be attractive as a team; you can't do that if you only aim for stage races. In the classics, there is no sitting around waiting; you have to make a decision every second. It is a big, unpredictable drama, and we want to be part of that," Aldag continues. "With our new riders, we don't have today's superstars, but we can train them to be important players. We want to attack Van Aert and Van der Poel, and we can do that with Laurence Pithie, Oier Lazkano, and Maxim Van Gils. I feel the fierceness in this group, so we can't wait to take up the challenge."
"It is unrealistic to pronounce now that we will defeat Mathieu and Wout on the Kwaremont. If you want to beat them, we think there is a way. Anticipate, so you have several guys in the final. That's what we are going for because there are many possibilities. We must create our luck and not rely on our talent and experience. You have to force something and make the race interesting. The guys want to win a classic in 2025, so the motivation is already there."
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💥 A fresh look for 2025! 💥
— Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe (@RBH_ProCycling) December 13, 2024
Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe is excited to ride from head to toe with Specialized 👊🏼
Check it out here 👉🏼 https://t.co/ay8PgtcRIE pic.twitter.com/dPp41krjdK

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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- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling for
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
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