
Groupama - FDJ announced that David Gaudu will ride the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana this season. I think the general manager of the team Marc Madiot will want from Gaudu the best possible GC result, but I hope he will not think about targeting the GC. Here is why.
This opinion article has been written by Lukáš Ronald Lukács.
Too many contenders
We have Jonas Vingegaard, Tadej Pogačar, Primoz Roglič, Remco Evenepoel, Adam Yates, Simon Yates, Sepp Kuss, Tao Geoghegan Hart, João Almeida, Juan Ayuso, Enric Mas, Richard Carapaz, Pello Bilbao, Carlos Rodriguez, Felix Gall, Tom Pidcock. All potentially targeting the Tour de France. Maybe Gaudu can repeat last year’s 9th place, but I don’t think it is worth it to sacrifice everything for it. It would be just another Tour Top 10 for him.
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0 Tour de France stage wins yet
Despite having multiple World Tour wins and also 4th overall at the Tour de France David Gaudu has never won a stage at the Tour de France. And for a Frenchman, it would be really precious. And he can achieve this only if he does not target the GC and jump to the breakaways.
Polka dot jersey
Why not go also for a polka dot jersey then just a stage wins? Until now no rider made this jersey a goal for this year's Tour de France and David Gaudu has the all abilities to do well in the hunt of the polka dots.
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More entertaining the people
Riding always just to limit the losses is not the most precious thing that people admire about cyclists. That’s why Enric Mas is not that popular among the fans. But if he would rather go to the breakaways, attack the stage wins, he will be more on the screen and also he will be a bigger hero among the fans.
Be fresher to Vuelta
As I mentioned above David Gaudu plans to ride also the La Vuelta. And here he will have a much bigger chance in the GC than at the Tour. From the big 4 only Vingegaard will go and besides that not too many big contenders.
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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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- It would likely be a very steep section of 4.1 km, not changing the average gradient considerably, with the climb remaining 10.1 km at 11.8%. It would reach 20% on the gravel. It would start 1.6 km in, and finish with 4.2 km left to climb (before the short final descent)
Rafionain-Glas02-11-2026 - Welcome to the off-season.
santiagobenites02-11-2026 - guillaume martin in this list is quite a surprise as a gc rider.Ketterechts02-11-2026
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