


Visma | Lease a Bike had its 2026 roster ready. But due to the sudden departure of Cian Uijtdebroeks to Movistar, the team must go back to the market. The specific role of the 22-year-old Belgian is difficult to fill. WielerFlits outlines the options.
Team selections are often structured around specific roles. Think GC contender, sprinter, classics specialist, and domestique. But also for a high potential GC rider, such as Uijtdebroeks. He was part of the specially formed White Jersey Group within Visma | Lease a Bike. However, there is one problem for Uijtdebroeks’ role: a talented stage racer is hardly available on the market anymore. Harold Martín López from Ecuador seems to be the only option, but the Dutch team has never invested in South Americans before. So that doesn’t seem likely.
Nonetheless, this probably doesn’t mean Visma | Lease a Bike will leave that spot unfilled or fill it differently, or settle for less. Uijtdebroeks still had a contract until the end of 2027. Exact details are unknown, but according to our sources, he had an above-average salary. It’s customary that the team taking over a rider before the end of his contract at least pays an amount equivalent to the salary of the remaining contract years. On top of that, often an additional transfer fee follows. So it seems Visma | Lease a Bike has room to also take on a rider with a running contract. But even then, there aren't many options for the team. Still, we list them here.
Joe Blackmore (Israel-Premier Tech)
Looking at the GC Ranking from CyclingFlash over the past year, Uijtdebroeks ranks 88th. Kévin Vauquelin is just above him, but he has signed for three years with INEOS Grenadiers. Further down (110th), we see the name Joe Blackmore. The 22-year-old Brit won last year’s Tour de l'Avenir – thereby becoming the successor to Uijtdebroeks, no less – and is contracted until the end of 2026 with Israel-Premier Tech. This year he made his pro debut and has posted impressive results, including several top 20 finishes in WorldTour races. He also rode the Tour de France and seems to have significant growth potential.
Finn Fisher-Black (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
Further down the list (147th) we find Finn Fisher-Black. The 23-year-old New Zealander was developed by the team itself but chose a financially much better offer from UAE Emirates to make his pro debut in 2022. Ultimately, that decision meant that FFB was allowed to leave for the Emirates team already at the end of 2021. Due to long-term injury issues, he didn’t blossom there. However, he has been at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe for the past two seasons. This year he finished third in the Tour Down Under and sixth in the UAE Tour, but within the German powerhouse, he is certainly not the first choice. The question remains whether Visma | Lease a Bike could forgive him and whether they consider him good enough.
Junior Lecerf (Soudal-Quick-Step)
After Remco Evenepoel’s departure, Ilan Van Wilder has moved up to the role of GC leader. There’s also more room for Junior Lecerf, who would also fit well within Visma | Lease a Bike. In fact, based on his performance over the last year, he even outperforms Uijtdebroeks. In the 365 GC Ranking by CyclingFlash, the Belgian of Soudal-Quick-Step is fiftieth. Logical, as Lecerf finished eighth in the UAE Tour, fourteenth in the Tour of Catalonia, eighth in the Tour de Romandie, and eleventh in the Vuelta a España this year. Moreover, he won the Czech Tour. Visma would need to work on his time trialing.
Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe)
Another option for Visma | Lease a Bike at Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe is Giulio Pellizzari. He’s having a breakthrough year. The nearly 22-year-old Italian finished sixth in both the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España this season after strong closing weeks. He also placed sixteenth (supporting Primož Roglič) in the Tour of Catalonia and fourth in the Vuelta a Burgos. The Italian is contracted for next year as well, but the competition is huge with Evenepoel, Roglič, Daniel Felipe Martínez, Aleksandr Vlasov, and Florian Lipowitz. At Visma, besides Jonas Vingegaard, Matteo Jorgenson, Ben Tulett, and Jørgen Nordhagen, there might be more room for Pellizzari. Visma has previously done business with the Germans, but the price tag will likely be steep this time.
Max Poole (Picnic PostNL)
Another team known for cooperating when a rider with a running contract wants to leave is Picnic PostNL. Visma | Lease a Bike has brought Tom Dumoulin and Tiesj Benoot from that team in the past. Now that Oscar Onley has definitively broken through, he will be the GC leader next year. There is definitely room beside him, and normally Max Poole would fit that spot. The 22-year-old Brit ranks 54th on the GC Ranking, thanks mainly to the first half of the season. He finished thirteenth in the Volta ao Algarve, seventh in the Tour of the Alps, and eleventh in the Giro d’Italia. The talent is there, but his injury proneness has hindered his breakthrough. Perhaps a change of scenery will help. Poole still has two years left on his contract, making him more expensive.
Magnus Sheffield (INEOS Grenadiers)
INEOS Grenadiers was for years the world’s top grand tour team, but that changed completely since the COVID pandemic. However, with Thymen Arensman, Egan Bernal, Carlos Rodríguez, and next year also Kévin Vauquelin, there are still some good options. The 23-year-old American Magnus Sheffield also has potential in this area. This year was only his second grand tour (Vuelta), but he did not impress. In week-long stage races, however, he has already delivered for years. Just last week he finished fifth in the Tour of Croatia and this spring came fourth in Paris-Nice. He’s also placed fifth in the Tour of Poland and fourth in the Tour Down Under.
Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto)
Like Sheffield, Lennert Van Eetvelt also has a one-year contract remaining after this season. The merger between his team Lotto and Intermarché-Wanty is expected to be announced soon. Normally, he would be one of the GC leaders in that project. The 24-year-old Belgian has earned that. Last year, he won two stage races at WorldTour level – the UAE Tour and the Tour of Guangxi. He ranks 66th on CyclingFlash’s GC Ranking. This year, the somewhat introverted Belgian (who would fit well personality-wise with the Dutch team) has also made his presence known. Van Eetvelt finished eleventh in the UAE Tour and eighth in the Tour of Catalonia. However, after his crash in the Tour de France, he hasn’t raced again. A potential transfer would also help the merged team create more space.
Lorenzo Finn (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe Rookies)
One of the biggest talents among the U23s currently is Lorenzo Finn. The still only 18-year-old Italian became world champion in impressive fashion last week in Kigali among the U23s. A year earlier, he also won the junior world championship in Zürich. Finn has the presence of a champion, and his results reflect that. As a debutant, he was immediately sixth in the Giro d’Italia U23 and fourth in the Tour de l’Avenir.
The plan is still for him to step up to Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe’s pro team in 2027. There is one spot left on that team for next year, but they want to keep it that way. It seems unlikely, therefore, that the Germans will just let their gem go. They have been investing money in him for two years now, with results. Moreover, Visma | Lease a Bike already has a rider of that type in Jørgen Nordhagen.
Paul Seixas (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale)
One of the revelations and sensations of this season is the just 19-year-old first-year pro Paul Seixas. Last weekend, he rode a phenomenal European Championship, winning bronze and sharing the podium with Tadej Pogačar and Remco Evenepoel. The class and talent drip from Seixas, and it appears France finally has someone who can compete for the Tour victory in the future. His current team Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale has a long-term plan for him, aiming for him to be ready for Tour leadership in 2028 – together with Léo Bisiaux and Johannes Staune Mittet. It therefore seems unlikely his financially strong current team will let him go. Also, he would be competing with Jørgen Nordhagen (20) for space.
Jarno Widar (Lotto)
The same applies to a potential transfer of Jarno Widar. The almost 20-year-old Belgian is considered one of the greatest climbing talents in the world. Last weekend he became European champion in Southern France on a true climbing course. He also won this year the grueling Giro della Valle d’Aosta U23 and the Ronde de l’Isard U23. He finished second in the Tour de l’Avenir, while last year, he won the Giro d’Italia U23. Widar is normally set to make his pro debut next year with the merged team but flirted heavily with Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe last year. He also criticized Lotto’s team management at the time, but those tensions seem smoothed over this year. Widar is much younger than Uijtdebroeks and would also enter Jørgen Nordhagen’s waters.
The overview above looks at talented stage racers under 25 years old. We chose to exclude leaders from other teams as much as possible, because it’s not realistic that Visma | Lease a Bike would acquire such riders to replace Uijtdebroeks. After all, he didn’t have that position himself.
Also, riders who have just signed with a new team were not considered. For these reasons, riders like Remco Evenepoel, Juan Ayuso, Isaac Del Toro, Florian Lipowitz, Oscar Onley, Thymen Arensman, Carlos Rodríguez, Kévin Vauquelin, Mattias Skjelmose, Ilan Van Wilder, Lenny Martinez, and Antonio Tiberi are not included in this article.

Joe Blackmore - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Finn Fisher-Black - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Junior Lecerf beat Uijtdebroeks in the Czech Tour - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Giulio Pellizzari - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Max Poole - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Magnus Sheffield - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Lennert Van Eetvelt - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Lorenzo Finn - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Paul Seixas - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos

Jarno Widar - photo: fotopersburo Cor Vos
Compared to: 10/6/2024
| Rank | Rider | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | 2317 | |
| 37 | 55 | 1886 | |
| 50 | 39 | 1847 | |
| 54 | 24 | 1834 | |
| 66 | 34 | 1809 | |
| 88 | 57 | 1745 | |
| 95 | - | 1731 | |
| 111 | - | 1713 | |
| 128 | - | 1693 | |
| 147 | - | 1676 |