"When I thought about it, I really wanted to keep racing” - Larry Warbasse shuts down thoughts of retirement to keep career alive with Tudor

Things looked very uncertain a few weeks ago for experienced American Larry Warbasse. After over a decade in the World Tour, the 34-year-old was nearing the 2025 season contractless. Thankfully though, Tudor Pro Cycling Team have come in and given the former American champ a one-year deal.

“I’d been waiting to hear from one or two teams, but nothing happened,” Warbasse recalls of his time spent searching for a contract, in conversation with Velo, explaining how a phone call from an unknown Swiss number changed everything. “I thought, ‘Okay, maybe I should pick this up.’ He (Raphael Meyer, the general manager of Tudor Pro Cycling Team) asked if I was still available for next year. When I said yes, he told me they had decided to add a 30th rider to their roster."

Thankfully for the former Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale man, the rider they were searching for was him. “They needed someone with experience, someone who could handle a heavy race schedule. It felt like he was describing me,” Warbasse explains, admitted his delight to bring an end to his uncertainty. “When I was younger, it was harder to deal with. Unfortunately I’ve had a lot of experience with that, so now I’m used to it. If I had to stop, I could still be proud of the career that I had. I still got to live my dream. It really wasn’t my choice, but when I thought about it, I really wanted to keep racing.”

“We were not planning on adding a final rider,” Meyer himself adds to Velo. “We had 29 and we thought we had closed the roster. But last year [2024] we knew we ended the season with a lot of tired bodies, so we started to think we could use another strong, experienced rider. Larry wasn’t the first choice, but I do remember that he emailed me. And when we started to think about it, he made the perfect fit for us.”

“We have Marc Hirschi and Julian Alaphillipe, who will be there fighting for the win in some of the biggest races, so I know I can play a critical role in those moments,” Warbasse adds. “I would love to be able to do the Tour de France if I could because I still haven’t done it. So if the team gets invited, I would really love to do that.”

“If I could contribute to a big win for one of the leaders of the team this year, like a big, big race, that would be cool. And yeah, I’d also like to try to win a race myself," the American concludes. “I think that would a nice cherry on the top of my career. I want to reach my full potential for this season. I want to be the best I can be and keep improving, and also just have fun. Because if you’re not having fun, pro cycling is just too hard.”