"Work full gas for him to make a big gap on Roglic" - Mathias Vacek puts massive engine to many uses at Giro's Strade Bianche stage
Cycling
Lidl-Trek have an absolute diamond in the rough in Mathias Vacek. So far in this Giro d'Italia he has been absolutely key to Mads Pedersen in his pursuit of stage wins, and on stage 9 - besides fighting for the stage win - he was also key in helping Giulio Ciccone distancing his GC rivals into the finale in Siena.
"I was feeling super good today. In the second sector with the crash, I stayed in the group behind. I had to make it back and restart, but I had the information that Cicco was dropped as well," Vacek told Cyclingnews.
The Czech rider is in superb form; and although a bad day on stage 8 cut his chances of reaching the pink jersey significantly, it didn't mean he was suffering from fatigue. After INEOS Grenadiers' group went off the front in the gravel sectors, Vacek did an impressive to close down the gap almost by himself to the front group.
"I just wanted to go, because I knew if I made it in the front as fast as possible, I could recover, maybe stay with them, but I made a bit of hesitation between waiting for Cicco and going for it". That ended up proving costly, as he later struggled with the attacks of Isaac del Toro and Wout van Aert in the final sectors of the race. "Del Toro started attacking a bit too much on the last sector, and I got dropped with Bernal."
After some changing of plans, with Vacek's stage win seeming very hard to achieve, he waited for the group of Juan Ayuso, where he fully comitted to pulling the group alongside UAE to benefit Giulio Ciccone's GC ambitions. "Then, I was pushing for Cicco to work full gas for him to make a big gap on Roglic. Still, it was a good job". It was a job well done, and Vacek himself in 14th place in the general classification.
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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