The most in form rider? Sam Welsford reacts to brilliant start to 2025: "I think we learned a lot from last year"

Sam Welsford has started the 2025 season in brilliant fashion, securing three stage victories at the Tour Down Under before playing a key role in helping his Red Bull – BORA - hansgrohe teammate Laurence Pithie to third place at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race on Sunday.

Welsford acknowledged the importance of a strong start to the season, telling Cyclingnews, "The big focus for us was getting it dialled in for this year and starting well. I think we learned a lot from last year, not getting too complacent with our train because we know how strong we are, but when you go to UAE everyone is super strong there, so we have to have a lot of focus and horsepower, and we have that now."

Shane Archbold, a key part of Welsford’s lead-out train, also noted the improvements made over the past year. "I would say we still have to get a few things dialled but he’s definitely going better than he was last year," Archbold said. "It was very good to see him in good condition. Sam’s super motivated at the moment, so it’s nice. Obviously last year the big goal for him personally was the Olympics. Luckily for Australia, he ticked that box and now this year is more of a road focus."

Archbold also highlighted the adjustments Welsford has made in his training. "Definitely he’s done a little bit different work," he continued. "For Down Under you don’t necessarily need to, track form is good enough I would say to get through shorter stages, very hard stages but short, fast finishes, but it’ll be more later in the year we see."

Welsford is optimistic about what lies ahead after his strong start to the year. "If you have a good winter and get the K’s in, which I had a big focus on this year, really getting a good base in the legs, so I could come here good… UAE and Paris-Nice… should be really nice to do off this form, some of the Classics, and then reset for some of the bigger goals this year," he said.

One of those goals could be making his Grand Tour debut, but Welsford remains cautious about his chances. "Fingers crossed I can do a Grand Tour. That would be the best option for me, but we have to see what the team thinks," he said. "I know how hard they are, and we have a really strong team now. If we did the Tour de France, there are options for a sprint train there because I think they might take a bit of a different team because Primož will do the Giro and the Tour I imagine, but we don’t know yet. Hopefully, it’s a discussion for later."

For now, Welsford is focused on continuing his momentum into the European season. "If we keep winning in Europe and doing all the right things we’ll give ourselves a good argument."