In conversation with Cancellara🇨🇭
An exclusive interview with the Tudor Pro Cycling boss on roster building, Hirschi versus Pogačar at Strade, transfers, and the balance between wins and points
Tudor Pro Cycling have already enjoyed a strong start to the season with three wins and several standout performances. However, according to team boss Fabian Cancellara, they’re just getting started, with the former rider creating a winning culture within a team that aspires to join the WorldTour in the future.
In this wide-ranging and exclusive interview, we talk about the Classics, going up against Tadej Pogačar at Strade Bianche, the balance between chasing wins over UCI points, riders on the transfer market such as Primož Roglič, Stefan Küng and Olav Kooij, and loads, loads more.
Daniel Benson: Fabian, I hear you’re currently on your way to Strade Bianche. How has the season been for you and Tudor Pro Cycling Team so far?
Fabian Cancella: It’s busy but a good busy. Between winning, losing, having riders out with broken bones, and moving into the next phase of racing, it’s really busy but we’re in a process and it’s about building up. We’re at a certain level, and from the outside, it might look like, ‘Oh wow,’ but we’re only two years old and young as a team. We’ve gone from having 20 something riders to having 30 riders, and this year we’ve won three races with three different riders. Yesterday, we had Michael Storer make a nice race in Italy, and there’s just so much going on, but the most crucial aspect for me is that we continue to have happy people on our team. You can go for longer with happy people and get through the more challenging times. I’m happy though, and grateful to have those people around me, because it’s not about me, it’s about us, and we have 130 people in our organisation now. We go into a big phase with Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Paris-Nice, and we’ve had some late changes but we want to keep our positivity up.
DB: So now you have Marc Hirschi for Strade Bianche and Tirreno, and then Julian for Paris-Nice. Is that still the plan?
FC: That’s the plan. We lost Marco Brenner in a crash last week, so he’s out for a bit. Lucas Eriksson has a broken collarbone, and we lost Arvid de Kleijn on the last stage of UAE Tour. With not having them in Tirreno, we still have Marc, but it’s not the team that we hoped for. That’s sport, though, and you can’t change that and we have alternatives. We’re ready for what’s coming.
DB: Are you happy with how the two new leaders, Julian Alaphilippe and Marc Hirschi, have adapted to the squad and performed?