"Ready for a new challenge" - Dylan van Baarle races final Grand Tour for Visma as he sets to go back to full-on classics vision with Quick-Step
Cycling
After a brilliant stint with INEOS Grenadiers where he was one of the very best classics riders in the world, Dylan van Baarle had a tough time with Team Visma | Lease a Bike heavily marked by injuries. Next year he moves to Soudal - Quick-Step to try and become a leader in the cobbled classics once again, but before he will have a support role for Jonas Vingegaard at a Vuelta a España where the team has winning ambitions.
But this is a collective goal, and the Dutchman won't necessarily have much freedom to do it for himself. “No, I have no ambition to chase a result for myself. That’s not what I’m here for," van Baarle shared with Domestique. "We’re starting with a strong team and we want to fight for the overall victory, the highest possible.”
Van Baarle assisted Simon Yates to the Giro victory earlier this year, and ultimately his time with Visma has been more marked by his domestique work in the Grand Tours, where his rouleur and climbing abilities made him an ever-valuable asset for the likes of Vingegaard, Primoz Roglic and more.
But next year onwards, he will be able to focus on his own results once again. “I was probably ready for a new challenge. And I’m really looking forward to it. Quick-Step really wants to focus on the classics again. That was the deciding factor. Of course, it’s also a true classics team by nature, and it’s great to be part of it soon.”
He laments his time with Visma ending this way, not having fulfilled the potential that he had when coming into the team. But that was not fully on his shoulders. Only between June of 2024 and January 2025 he suffered three crashes each leading to fractures that took him out of competition but above all constantly disrupted his training.
Ultimately consistency and evolution were not possible for the veteran. “It didn’t turn out the way we’d hoped, no. Due to various circumstances. Due to a lot of injuries that I had to recover from. In that respect, these haven’t been my best three years. But I have to try to put it aside and go into this Vuelta with confidence.”
“It was mentally tough. Three injuries like that in a row is just a bit too much. You’re back in the same boat. Everyone around you is only getting better at the start of the season, while you’re falling behind. That was the main difficulty. I think I underestimated the impact of those injuries a bit, fitness-wise," he concluded.
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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- maybe we should put our cv at the end of each comment post ... same rights for all of us!Ketterechts01-11-2026
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- Cutting his suit up and getting him to sign it while quite seriously injured is absolutely ghoulishwrsty01-11-2026
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- Hey @frieder3, yeah sure, bull crap. What experience? You have no eyperience, you're an amateur cyclist... and to make things even worse, you're a lousy amateur cyclist. So what you're saying about your C7 has no relevance... do you even know where C7 is in your body? No, it's not in your knee!!! PS: Trump loves ya... 😍😍😍PogiSloFans01-11-2026
- He won't have a neck problem until he's older and arthritis kicks in lil guy !frieders301-11-2026
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