The battle for the World Tour positions for the 2023-2025 seasons started way back in January of 2020. A lot has happened since, but 2022 specially has been marked by a battle between some teams over their maintenance at World Tour level. The war has ended.
Lotto Soudal and Israel - Premier Tech are confirmed to be relegating to Pro Team level. The most recent update from Raúl Banqueri not only shows an increase in the gap between Lotto Soudal and 18th place team Arkéa Samsic, but the remaining road calendar this season just does not provide enough points for a recovery to be possible. The Belgian team, and Israel - Premier Tech who sit even further down the charts, will not be World Tour teams in 2023.
The Belgian team however will not suffer heavily, as their strong 2022 season has earned them wildcards for all World Tour events, and they can choose where to race in the top ranks. TotalEnergies will also have that privilege after an equally strong season. Israel - Premier Tech will have automatic wildcards for all World Tour one-day races, however not for the stage-races and Grand Tours where it will have to battle with rival teams.
This will also see the promotion of Alpecin-Deceuninck and Arkéa Samsic to World Tour level after three seasons riding at the highest level, and has been seen, at a superior level to some that have had a higher position in the structure. This coming week will see the Tour de Langkawi, aswell as a few one-day races over Europe and Asia, but the standings have largely been sealed already.
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.
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Lotto Soudal's relegation is already a fact, with 1170 points deficit and only 5 races to go. I'll post the full analysis of the situation tomorrow. Félicitations @Arkea_Samsic for scoring the points to be promoted to the UCI WorldTour.
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