Two Grand Tours, two abandonments: Cian Uijtdebroeks' troubled first year at Movistar raises big questions
Cycling
Cian Uijtdebroeks' first season at Movistar Team has fallen short of expectations. The Belgian arrived at the Spanish team with the responsibility of becoming one of their leading general classification contenders, but his debut campaign in Movistar colours has raised more questions than answers. Two Grand Tour abandonments, physical problems and a lack of consistency have defined a disappointing 2026 campaign from which much more had been expected.
Uijtdebroeks' results show that he is capable of competing with the best on his day, but they also highlight his struggles to sustain that level across week-long stage races and, particularly, the three-week Grand Tours.
He ends the season having covered 5,350.5 kilometres across 37 race days, earning 339 PCS ranking points and 462.67 UCI points.
His season began at the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, where he abandoned before completing the fourth stage. That early setback did not prevent him from finding some form later in the year, but the Belgian never quite managed to establish the consistency needed to make the step forward Movistar had hoped for.
Cian Uijtdebroeks at the 2026 Tour de France team presentation
Two promising results that failed to spark a sustained run of form
One of the highlights of his campaign came in March at the Volta a Catalunya. Uijtdebroeks finished eighth overall and second in the young rider classification, having spent much of the week competing among the race's strongest climbers. His ninth-place finish on stage five, which featured La Molina and Coll de Pal, was another encouraging performance.
Just a few days earlier, he had also claimed an impressive fifth place at Milano-Torino. However, those performances did not translate into consistent results in the races that followed. At Itzulia Basque Country, he finished 12th overall, although his fourth place on stage two offered another glimpse of his ability. He subsequently finished 31st at La Fleche Wallonne and 23rd at Liege-Bastogne-Liege.
His best overall finish in a stage race came in June at the Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes. The Belgian finished seventh in the general classification and fourth in the young rider standings, having produced two strong performances in the mountains: fifth on the stage finishing at the Grand Colombier and ninth at Plateau de Solaison.
It was another indication of what Uijtdebroeks could achieve when he found some rhythm and enjoyed a relatively trouble-free run physically. However, the most important part of his calendar was still to come, and it was there that his problems became most apparent.
Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana: Two major opportunities missed
The Tour de France was one of Uijtdebroeks' main objectives for the season. He started the race in Barcelona hoping to establish himself as an important general classification rider for Movistar Team. His opening days were hardly spectacular, but nor were they disastrous, as he finished 20th on stage one, 17th on stage two and 27th on stage three.
Things deteriorated over the following days. The Belgian finished 86th on stage four and 72nd on stage five before illness forced him to abandon on stage six, which finished in Gavarnie-Gedre. His first Tour appearance in Movistar colours therefore ended much earlier than anticipated, without giving him the opportunity to discover how far he could climb in the general classification.
The Vuelta a Espana offered little consolation. Uijtdebroeks began the Spanish Grand Tour in Monaco, but his participation was even shorter. After finishing 123rd in the opening time trial, he placed 77th on stage two and was absent from the stage three classification. He then finished 182nd on stage four before failing to start the following day.
This time, his withdrawal came after a crash, bringing another Grand Tour opportunity to a premature end. Two different setbacks, illness in France and a crash in Spain, ultimately shaped his season and deprived Movistar of one of the riders they had hoped would deliver strong performances over three weeks.
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2027: A season to take the next step
Uijtdebroeks' disappointing 2026 campaign should not overshadow his more promising performances, particularly his eighth place in Catalunya, seventh at the Tour Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes and fifth at Milano-Torino. Those results demonstrate his ability to compete for significant placings, but he now needs to produce them more consistently throughout the season.
Movistar Team invested in the Belgian with an eye on the future and his potential to develop into a leading Grand Tour contender. That makes his first season feel like a missed opportunity. His abandonments were not the result of poor performances on the bike, but they prevented him from delivering on the expectations surrounding his arrival.
In 2027, he will have another chance to show that he can take the next step. Movistar need Uijtdebroeks to turn his potential into more consistent results and, above all, to complete the major races on his calendar. After a debut campaign disrupted by setbacks, the Belgian will need to deliver considerably more to justify the expectations that accompanied his move to the Spanish team.
Juan LarraCycling Journalist
Juan Larra is a writer for Cyclinguptodate and editor-in-chief of Ciclismoaldia, where he has played a central role since its inception. Under his leadership, the website has become a trusted source for professional cycling coverage, offering in-depth analysis, news, and feature stories.
A sports journalist with over 20 years of experience, Juan earned his degree in Journalism from the University of Seville in 2007. He began his career covering a wide range of sports—including football, basketball, Formula 1, MotoGP, tennis, and cycling—for platforms such as the official La Liga app, Vodafone and Movistar websites, NBA Blogdebasket, and Cadena Cope, honing his skills in writing and editorial management.
In addition to his work at Ciclismoaldia, Juan contributes to Cyclinguptodate and serves as editor-in-chief for the tennis-focused site Tenisaldia. Throughout his career, he has conducted exclusive interviews with cyclists and sports figures, provided detailed analysis of competitions ranging from local Spanish races to major international events, and acted as a special correspondent at prestigious races including Paris-Roubaix, the Tour de France, and the Vuelta a España.
Juan’s combination of experience, expertise, and direct access to athletes has established him—and the platforms he leads—as authoritative voices in professional cycling.
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- does anyone really think he is taking a next step?mij05-11-2026
- in the team’s defense, Bernal is 29. when he won his first TdF people were talking about him winning a record # of GTs. Where would they be if that crash had never happened. I’m not saying he would compete with Tadej, but he did podium Strade Bianche, and certainly could have won a GT that Tadej wasn’t in.mij05-11-2026
- "c'mon Jonas!"wrsty05-11-2026
- I see I missed a lot during my boycott.Jumpyjohn05-11-2026
- What kind of sauce is on that rice? Ketchup?Kbd05-11-2026
- 18 broken bones. 78 crashes, among 30 rider per year is a lot. so for a rider over 15 seasons, they will break their bones 7-8 times and crash 38 times.abstractengineer04-11-2026
- i dont think he is ready ot win against the top 2 or the 2nd rung of evenepoel, del toro , Almeida. In the third week in the TDF he was very very defensive, no attacks. i think he was exhausted. right now he needs time not the brutal Giro or the intense TDF.abstractengineer04-11-2026
- Rota is an excellent rider to get in a break with because he always does his turnchapmanesque04-11-2026
- That 3000 extra that the Tour de France is built up in the flat stages
Rafionain-Glas04-11-2026 - maybe this is something else they can protest in the streets of France.mij04-11-2026
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