Rival teams show great interest in Jordi Meeus as Belgian seems likely to part ways with Red Bull at the end of this season
Cycling
We're reaching the culmination of the first major racing block in 2026 but behind the scenes, rider agents have been in permanency since the start of this year, and now first big transfer rumours begin to surface as there's still more than three months until the official transfer window opens. But teams looking to add significant amount of firepower to their 2027 roster must be already finishing the new deals. After all, if you hesitate too long, the desired star rider may sign elsewhere in the meantime.
The teams looking to recruit a prominent sprinter will find several options on the market but only one has a Champs-Élysées triumph in their palmares - Jordi Meeus.
It has to be said that Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe is reluctant to communicating the actual contract lengths of their riders (for example Remco Evenepoel is said to have a deal running through 2028, even though it has never been communicated), but that Meeus is in his contract year after six seasons at the German team appears to be true.
WielerFlits report that, despite already having three sprinters with Tim Merlier, Paul Magnier and Alberto Dainese contracted for 2027, Soudal - Quick-Step have expressed interest in the Belgian sprinter's services. However HLN believe that Alpecin-Premier Tech is a team which could become Meeus' new destination as their second sprinter Kaden Groves could be on the way out. Then it's easy to see Meeus as a one-for-one replacement with added sponsor value for the Belgian team.
Major shuffle in the sprinter guild
There is a rather good match between Meeus - who doesn't require a dedicated sprint train to deliver results & offers added value as a back-up leader for cobbled classics - and Red Bull at the moment, however there is another rider on the market who seems almost destined to wear the beverage company's logo on his chest; Arnaud De Lie.
Nicknamed "The Bull from Lescheret", it's only natural were his career paths to cross with Ralph Denk's formation, and it surfaces that the German team is indeed pushing for the signature of De Lie.
Speaking of Groves, his future remains open at the moment, although a contract extension at Alpecin-Premier Tech seems to be an option, in particular if Meeus were to head to another house.
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
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- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
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