Paul Double ready to sacrifice himself for Ben O'Connor in his new team: "I know that as a debutant at the highest level I still have some things to learn"

Despite his late arrival to the sport, Paul Double has been able to gradually find his way to the top echelon of road cycling, signing his first WorldTour contract for 2025-26 seasons. At Jayco AlUla, he is realistic about his ambitions, highlighting his role as a helper in the mountains.

The 28-year-old Double got on the radar of Australian team after a great campaign in Polti Kometa jersey. "It was a very good year, I enjoyed this season with the team. I didn't really know what to expect, but I got a lot of chances after the first training camps. Polti Kometa worked very hard for me and I was able to achieve consistent results."

"This season has gone really fast. I started in Mallorca and I can feel it now," he told WielerFlits in early October. "I was not at the level I was riding at before, so late in the season."

"The Tour of Slovenia really stood out for me. I couldn’t get a very good GC there because of a crash in the opening stage, but I was close to winning the queen stage. Although, Pello Bilbao really beat me by a long shot on the finish line," he laughs. "But finishing second behind Bilbao in that mountain stage was a great result. That proved that I’m close to a big win at this level. That’s something promising."

"Hopefully I’ll be ready to show myself in the WorldTour. Next year I’ll go to Jayco AlUla and I’m really looking forward to that," said the Briton. "Ben O’Connor is of course coming to the team and I know that as a debutant at the highest level I still have some things to learn. But I hope that I’ll also get some chances to prove myself."

O’Connor was second at the Vuelta this year and the team would like to bet on him on another opportunity some time soon. "Certainly, that will also be part of my role," he indicates. "That I will ride in the WorldTour is a dream, it is something that all cyclists strive for."