Wout Poels will continue his career until age 40: the Dutchman has officially confirmed the renewal of his contract with Unibet Rose Rockets for an additional year, signing an agreement that will cover the entire 2027 season. It is still too early to speculate about the calendar, but it is likely that the main possible objective for the winner of the 2016 Liège-Bastogne-Liège could be the same as last year, namely to win a stage at the Giro d'Italia, the last missing piece in his collection of stage victories in the Grand Tours.

ANOTHER YEAR OF CONTRACT

Following the bitter departure of Dylan Teuns, comes a long-awaited renewal like that of Wout Poels: the 39-year-old from Limburg has officially confirmed signing for 2027 with Unibet Rose Rockets at the National Cycling Gala held last night, November 2nd, in Utrecht, Netherlands. As reported by Wielerflits, Poels stated: «What matters most is that you love what you do, that you derive satisfaction from training and racing, and that you accept retirements positively. But, above all, that you continue to enjoy all of this. I have moved back to the Netherlands and this makes things a bit more complicated during the winter months, but in summer it doesn't make much difference». The reference is to his move from the milder Principality of Monaco (where he lived for ten years, since his Team Sky days and training with Chris Froome and Geraint Thomas) to Overloon, in the North Brabant region, right on the border with his native Limburg in 2025.

TARGET GIRO 

In 2026, Wout Poels attempted several breakaways during the recent Giro d'Italia to try to complete his collection of stage victories in the Grand Tours. He came close (but not quite) with a ninth place finish in Fermo on stage 8 and an eighth place at Pila on stage 14, while on stage 19 with the finish in Alleghe he attempted a breakaway, but without much success. It is not yet clear whether Unibet Rose Rockets will receive an invitation to the 2027 Giro, which will be presented today, November 3rd, but if they do, Poels will certainly be a likely candidate for selection. In addition to Liège in 2016, the 39-year-old has also collected - among other victories - a stage at the Tour de France and the Vuelta España in 2023, the overall classification of the 2022 Vuelta a Andalucía, the 2025 Tour of Turkey and the 2016 Vuelta Valenciana.