“Remco gave it everything, I was pulling as hard as I could" - Pello Bilbao details echelons attempt in successful day at UAE Tour
Cycling
Pello Bilbao started the UAE Tour as a big favourite, and his status has improved on the opening day as he thrived in the crosswinds. The climber now fits in the first positions and having improved his chances of winning the overall classification.
“It would have been a shame for the stage to finish with a bunch sprint. It was what we expected, the last time they started from that castle, the same thing happened, with echelons from the gun and today we knew what was coming," Bilbao admitted to Cyclingnews in a post-race interview. “We were waiting for that moment right from the start to take the initiative. We were ready.”
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From the start Bilbao was present in the front echelons, putting forwards his stage-racing skills. Bahrain had a heavy presence in the front groups, with sprinter Phil Bauhaus also present in the decisive split later on in the day. There, Bilbao was again in the front group, one of the three GC riders who made it across - alongside Remco Evenepoel and Luke Plapp.
“So we decided to go flat out with everything and see if we could break it all up again, and it worked out well," he says. “Remco gave it everything, I was pulling as hard as I could, and Ineos was working well as well. Let’s say we’ve cleaned up the overall classification a bit and we’ve got a good advantage now.”
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“And after all the hard work the team did, always taking the initiative and being so brave, it would have been a pity if we’d just reached the finish in a big group," the Basque continued. The effort earned him 51 seconds over many of his GC rivals, and a spot as a big favourite for the podium.
“We knew folks were tired, and so we tried again, and we pushed them hard…and tomorrow there’s another team time trial,” he concluded. Bahrain - Victorious face an important challenge on stage 2 as they fight to keep Bilbao within reach of the lead into the mountains, as well as maintain the gap created yesterday.
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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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- He will be lol, but he can still win on the climbs hahaawp04-11-2026
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- I'll say clean sweep all grand tourZamorano04-11-2026
- And the place he calls home is in Slovenia with his parents.RidesHills04-11-2026
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