Bicycle Racing News and Opinion,
Saturday, October 31, 2026
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Upcoming racing:
- Nov 1: Trofee Oudenaarde - Koppenbergcross
- Nov 7 & 8 European Cyclocross Championships
- Nov 15: Flandriencross
- Dec 6: Superpresitge Ruddervoorde
- Dec 19: Scheldecross
- Dec 23: Azencross-Loenhout
- Dec 25: Heusden Zolder Cross
- Dec 26: Gavere Cyclocross
- Dec 27: Namur Cross
- Dec 30: Diegem Cyclocross
- Jan 1: GP Sven Nys
- Jan 16 - 24: Tour Down Under
Latest completed racing:
- Oct 25: Superpresitge Overijse - Vlamse Druivencross
- Oct 13 - 18: Tour of Guangxi
- Oct 13 - 18: Tour of Holland
- Oct 18: Chrono des Nations
- Oct 18: Veneto Classic
- Oct 18: Japan Cup road Race
- Oct 14: Giro del Veneto
- Oct 11: Paris-Tours
- Oct 10: Il Lombardia
- Oct 8: Gran Piemonte
The rest of the year's completed races are here.
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Here’s the team’s announcement:
Bahrain Victorious is proud to announce a new partnership with Factor Bikes, who will become the UCI WorldTeam’s official bike partner from the 2027 season.
The partnership brings together two organisations united by a singular ambition: to push the boundaries of what is possible in professional cycling.
Built on a foundation of engineering excellence, innovation, and an uncompromising approach to performance, Factor has established itself among the leading brands in high-performance cycling. For Bahrain Victorious, the partnership brings the team together with a technical partner that shares its performance ethos and ambition to be the best, while ensuring its riders have access to one of the most advanced setups in the professional peloton.
Bahrain Victorious will switch from Bianchi bikes to Factor bikes.
Together, Bahrain Victorious and Factor will work closely to drive innovation, combining world-class engineering with the experience and insights of the team’s riders and performance staff to continue to advance bike performance.
Milan Eržen, Managing Director of Bahrain Victorious, commented:
“We have found a fantastic partner in Factor, a brand that shares our performance ethos and our ambition to be the best. Factor is continuously innovating on the bike, with a huge focus on performance, which will enable our riders to have one of the best setups in the peloton.
“For us, it was important to find a partner that shares the same drive to continuously improve. We believe that by combining Factor’s engineering expertise with the knowledge and feedback of our riders and performance team, we can push the boundaries of performance together and give our riders every opportunity to win at the very highest level.”
Rob Gitelis, Founder of Factor Bikes, commented:
“Personally, I find it fitting that Factor was born in the UK, and next year, in our tenth anniversary year, Factor will be back at the highest level of racing in the UK at the Tour de France. ”
“At Factor, we have always believed that racing at the pinnacle of the sport is fundamental to who we are. It’s where our ideas are challenged, where our engineering is tested, and where we continue to push ourselves forward. Bahrain Victorious shares our ambition and our belief that performance comes from challenging what is possible. We see this partnership as much more than supplying bikes to a professional team. It’s an opportunity to work together, to innovate, and to compete against the very best. We are incredibly excited about what we can achieve together from 2027.”
From the Grand Tours to the Classics, Bahrain Victorious riders will compete aboard Factor bikes, supported by the brand’s integrated approach to performance, engineering, and product development.
For Factor, the partnership reflects a belief that racing is not simply a platform to showcase its products, but an essential part of the design and development process.
The partnership will officially begin on 1 January 2027.
About Factor Bikes
Factor Bikes is a high-performance bike manufacturer and engineering-first brand, building the fastest UCI-legal racing bikes in the world. Founded by former professional cyclist and carbon-engineering pioneer, Rob Gitelis, Factor designs, prototypes, and manufactures its frames in-house, enabling unmatched speed of innovation and uncompromising control over performance.
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Here's the team's news:
Experienced Kazakh rider Anton Kuzmin has extended his contract with XDS Astana Team for one more season, through 2027.
The 29-year-old Anton Kuzmin dedicated the completed season entirely to supporting the team’s leaders. Among the main races where Kuzmin performed this role were the AlUla Tour, where Sergio Higuita finished second overall, the Arctic Race of Norway, won by Thomas Silva, and the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai, where Henok Mulubrhan finished third.
Anton Kuzmin
As part of the Kazakhstan national team, Anton Kuzmin helped Yevgeniy Fedorov win the road race at the Asian Championships. His individual results in 2026 included two bronze medals at the Kazakhstan National Championships, in the individual time trial and road race.
“It was far from the best season for me. I had some health problems after an intensive training block in February and competing at the Asian Championships. But I tried to fully focus on helping the team and did everything I could to help our leaders achieve success. I hope next year will be better. I am still ready to give 100% for the team’s goals, but I would also like to have the opportunity to show myself in some races, both with XDS Astana Team and with the national team”, – said Anton Kuzmin.
“Anton had a difficult year. After the Asian Championships in Saudi Arabia, he had some health issues and recovery took time. Nevertheless, he always did everything he could to help the team and our leaders, who ultimately achieved success. I won’t hide the fact that I expect more from Anton in 2027, both as a domestique and as a rider who could look for his own opportunities in certain races and earn ranking points for Kazakhstan”, – said Alexandr Vinokurov, General Manager of XDS Astana Team.
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Here’s the team’s news:
Following the contract extensions of the Spanish-speaking quartet Peñalver, Tercero, Muñoz and Gómez, Team Polti VisitMalta announces the renewal for 2027 of three Italian riders as well, each with different characteristics and ages but united by their professionalism in working together towards common goals. Starting with Mattia Bais, one of the leaders of the squad and the protagonist of countless breakaways, including the one that saw him come close to victory at the Tour de la Provence in February and the one in which he launched captain Maestri towards second place on the Milan stage of the Giro: “It will be my fifth season with this team. I’m really happy to stay here because it’s a great environment and I’m sure I can still take another step up”, said the 30-year-old from Trentino.
Mattia Bais wins 2023 Giro d'Italia stage seven. Sirotti photo
27-year-old Thomas Pesenti, from Emilia, is coming off his first season with Polti VisitMalta and as a professional athlete, in which he held on over many climbs and earned ten top-10 finishes, including 4th overall at the Settimana Coppi e Bartali, a podium at the Tour of Hainan and 2nd place at the Giro dell’Appennino in a thrilling sprint with teammate Crescioli: “I’m happy with the trust the team places in me, and I’m truly grateful for it! After some rest at the end of a demanding and stimulating 2026, I’ll approach the build-up to 2027 and the new season highly motivated, to keep improving with this team”.
Many kilometres pulling on the flat, many kilometres in the wind, many lead-outs for the sprint train (which also earned him 10th place on the last stage of the Tour of Türkiye) and plenty of generosity. 23-year-old Gabriele Raccagni, from Lombardy, is ready to race his third season with this team, having spent three years with the Under 23 squad before being promoted to the professional roster: “I’m very happy to be starting my sixth year in this project. They welcomed me as a kid coming up from the Juniors and they made me a man. I sincerely thank the management, the sports directors, the staff and everyone who continues to believe in me. I want to repay them with my performances!”
Team principal Ivan Basso: “Mattia Bais has been with us for years. He grew up here and found a very important role, both for himself and for us. Thomas Pesenti has confirmed the qualities that convinced us to sign him, we’ll work on making his results more consistent. Gabriele Raccagni is a rider we had the pleasure of developing and launching after his time in the youth ranks, one of those quiet and effective guys who are invaluable to the team, both in races and off the bike. All of them have room to grow, and together we’ll fulfil their potential”.