05/10/2023

Sam Bennett's disappointment led to role change for Danny van Poppel: "I had to make a mental shift because our sprinter isn't performing well"

Danny van Poppel signed with BORA - hansgrohe in 2022 and became a leading leadout man in the peloton. He let go of his personal ambitions to work for Sam Bennett, however the Irishman did not perform and van Poppel ended up returning to a leading sprint role lately.

"I know that I'm often in good shape after a Grand Tour, provided I have the right training and races to support it. While I've been able to train well, I've also noticed that my body feels fatigued after extended training sessions," van Poppel told In de Leiderstrui in a recent interview. "Nevertheless, my mental determination is strong, and perhaps that's the most crucial factor. The past few weeks have been exceptional. After the Tour of Britain, I had a two-week break at home. Now we have the final races of the season ahead, and we'll see how they go."

"A very strange situation" - Former Quick-Step rider Zdenek Stybar fears merger could hinder his chances of signing for a team in 2024

The German rider supported Bennett all throughout 2022, to some success at the Vuelta a Espana however as main sprinter at the Tour de France as the Irishman was pulled out. The same happened this summer, with van Poppel then sharing duties with Jordi Meeus. However, with Bennett's lack of form, BORA gave van Poppel the freedom to no longer be a leadout man once again. "I had to make a mental shift because our sprinter isn't performing well. It's a mix of positive and negative feelings. Taking chances is nice, but at the same time, you want to win as a team, like Olav Kooij does," he laments however.

He grabbed the opportunity with both hands, winning a stage at the Tour of Britain where he performed immensely, finishing on the podium of both the BEMER Cyclassics and the Deutschland Tour. Next year however with the entrance of a new fast man in the team, he hopes to contribute to the team's collective success. "I had initially chosen to be a lead-out rider, but it's unfortunate when things don't go as planned. There's not much you can do about it. Next year, we will have a new sprinter (Sam Welsford, ed.). Sam will be a new project for me. I don't know him well yet, but he seems like a great guy."