"UAE smashed all records this year" - Bas Tietema on how drafts or budget caps could equal cycling's level playing field
Cycling
Unibet Tietema Rockets are one of the most inovative projects in pro cycling over the past few years and by the year the French team is growing its level. In 2026 it's already having Dylan Groenewegen on board as a strong new leader and the Tour de France is becoming a more realistic dream. But Bas Tietema is well aware that at the top of the charts there is an overwhelming dominance by some teams and ponders on how this could be minimized.
“I think every sport has an interest of a competitive field where it's not known upfront who is going to win. You want to have excitement," the Dutchman said in Domestique's Hotseat podcast. "For example, in America, you have that first pick and the draft system. That’s also a way to create, for example, a more fairness or equal level playing field.”
Of course as part of one of the smaller teams in cycling's second division, this would benefit Tietema's squad, however he approaches this as a fan of cycling too. “A cap is maybe another way of making it more equal. But then you also get like... especially at this moment, you have teams who are really far above the rest and you have teams who are really... It's not the fault of the bigger teams because they are doing things right and they win a lot. But for the sport in general, you don't want it to become boring".
But there is a fine line between what can be termed impressive performances and races that simply do not carry the excitement and emotion, specially in such times where pro cycling has Tadej Pogacar contesting for the spot of best rider in the sport's history.
“It's a thin balance because on one hand you want to have heroes and you want to have people, characters. Therefore, you need to have riders who win more often than others. But then the moment when it starts to get boring, I think then that's too far.”
However the Dutchman knows it's unlikely that there will be big systematic changes implemented into the sport, and instead the team's dominance will run its natural course until it then moves to a different team.
“UAE smashed all records this year. But I still believe that in sports there will always be a new rider or someone else coming up. Even if you have people getting older, changes in management, there are so many reasons things can change. And there's always a new kid on the block," he argues. Could the likes of Paul Seixas and Jarno Widar provide this rivalry in a matter of a few years?
“For example, Ferrari dominated Formula One. It's really struggling the last years. It's not that long ago that Team Sky was winning every Tour de France and dominating every race. And this whole Sky Train was a thing. Right now, they are struggling.”
Groenewegen and Poels as new team leaders
Unibet don't have the men yet to ambition that spot spot in the sport, but the growth is palpable, not only in terms of riders, but presence and budget in the peloton. “We didn’t start with a business case or a sponsor deck. We started with people who believed in what we were doing, and we built a team around that. It’s been a steep climb. Surrounding ourselves with people who know how to build a proper cycling team, that’s what made it possible.”
Now in 2026, the presence of Dylan Groenewegen, Wout Poels and Niklas Larsen could deliver some very interesting results for the team. "Dylan isn’t here for a paycheck. He wants to leave a legacy. And Wout’s not just a mentor, he can still win races," Tietema assures. "It’s not just about the World Tour. It’s about building the biggest fanbase in cycling. If we can change even a few per cent of how the sport connects with people, that’s already huge.”
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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Good boy Obviously doesn’t need that much help dealing with pressure, as some have suggested. Wiser (and humbler) than many far further along their careers. About offering him the moon, recently someone came up with an explanation of the downfall of a football great (either referring to Maradona or Portuguese Ronaldo) saying it was kind of normal after coming back from the moon, except that others, including some who actually did go to the moon like Armstrong (Neil in case anyone is too switched off to realise) didn’t go through any of the same motions after coming back. A lot of how you deal with situations has less to do with the situation than with your character.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment