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Pro Log: Men’s Grand Tours get extra wildcard; Matthew Brennan breaks through; Tadej Pogačar to Paris-Roubaix; Lorena Wiebes hits 100 wins; Fabio Jakobsen takes time off bike
Welcome back to another edition of Pro Log. Here’s a rundown of the latest results before we get started:
- Men’s Gent Wevelgem, Sun 30th March: 1st Mads Pedersen, Lidl-Trek, 5h 30min 21sec; 2nd Tim Merlier, Soudal-QuickStep, +49sec; 3rd Jonathan Milan, Lidl-Trek, +49sec.
- Women’s Gent-Wevelgem, Sun 30th March: 1st Lorena Wiebes, SD Worx-Protime, 4h 11min 19sec; 2nd Elisa Balsamo, Lidl-Trek, +0sec; 3rd Charlotte Kool, Picnic PostNL, +0sec.
- Volta a Catalunya, Overall, Sun 30th March: 1st Primož Roglič, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, 24h 46min 21sec; 2nd Juan Ayuso, UAE Team Emirates XRG, +28sec; 3rd Enric Mas, Movistar, +53sec.
- Volta a Catalunya, Stage 7, Sun 30th March: 1st Primož Roglič, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, 1h 58min 27sec; 2nd Laurens De Plus, Ineos Grenadiers, +14sec; 3rd Lennert Van Eetvelt, Lotto, +14sec.
- Coppi e Bartali, Overall, Sat 29th March: 1st Ben Tulett, Visma-Lease a Bike, 18h 40min 04sec; 2nd Mark Donovan, Q36.5 Pro Cycling, +18sec; 3rd Igor Arrieta, UAE Team Emirates XRG, +23sec.
Increased number of teams in men’s Grand Tours
The number of teams participating in the men's Grand Tours increased to 23 by the UCI Management Committee https://t.co/InOlmFTY5Z pic.twitter.com/PCHZtY9xnC
— UCI_media (@UCI_media) March 31, 2025
The UCI has passed a measure for the addition of one more wildcard team to the start list of men’s Grand Tours with immediate effect after approval from the Professional Cycling Council. As a result, there will be 23 teams competing the 2025 Giro d’Italia, with organisers yet to reveal their wildcard selections. The decision has been made to support UCI ProTeams and give more riders the chance to race in a Grand Tour.
Previously, all 18 UCI WorldTour teams and the two best ProTeams in the UCI WorldTeam rankings (from the previous season) received an automatic invite for the season’s three Grand Tours, with two further ProTeam wildcards selected by the organisers. With Lotto, one of the top two ProTeams given an automatic Grand Tour invite, having declined to take part in the Giro d’Italia, that means there will be four wildcard teams at the event.
This news has been met with some concern over rider safety, especially given Grand Tour team sizes were reduced from nine to eight riders in 2018 for safety reasons.
Shortly after the UCI’s decision was made public, ASO announced the wildcard teams for this year’s Tour de France, with TotalEnergies, Uno-X and Julian Alaphilippe’s Tudor Pro Cycling getting the call-up.
Tadej Pogačar to ride Paris-Roubaix
It’s official. Tadej Pogačar will be on the start line for Paris-Roubaix. The World Champion will be making his hotly anticipated debut in the Hell of the North. He withdrew from the E3 Saxo Classic and Gent-Wevelgem to aim for the upcoming double of the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
Lorena Wiebes notches 100th win
Lorena Wiebes celebrated a milestone achievement at Gent-Wevelgem by notching her 100th career win after dominating the bunch sprint.
The Dutch star has had a stellar season so far, dominating all flat stages at the UAE Tour and winning the first women’s Milan-San Remo in 20 years.
Matthew Brennan wins big in Catalunya
First year pro Matthew Brennan has truly announced himself on the biggest stage of pro cycling, having taken two stage wins at the Volta a Catalunya last week, including an incredible finish on Stage 1.
The 19-year-old had been on hot form going into the race, notching three consecutive wins at Le Tour des 100 Communes, GP Lillers and GP de Denain, and his performances in Spain surprised even his Visma-Lease a Bike team, who pulled him out of the race and will be changing his schedule to take him to more important races. Rumours are circulating that he could be headed to Paris-Roubaix.
Fabio Jakobsen to take time off the bike
Picnic-PostNL have announced Fabio Jakobsen will undergo surgery on Wednesday and take time off the bike after he was diagnosed with FLIA – Flow Limitation of the Iliac Artery – which is a restriction of blood flow to the legs during exercise. They have set a timeframe of six weeks off and will monitor his progress and rehabilitation.
Jakobsen said, ‘It’s mentally of course a setback, but now that we have found the cause of the issue, I am hopeful that the surgery can then solve it. Sometimes you need to take one step back to be able to make two forward, and I hope that’s what I’m going to do now.’
It’s another blow for Jakobsen, who is yet to return to the heights of his success from 2022 when he managed 13 wins including a Tour de France stage and the European title. Since moving to Picnic-PostNL in 2024, the 28-year-old has only won once.
See you next week.
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