Team portrait Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team: From newcomer to Tour start in four years

Douglas Ryder founded the team after the end of Qhubeka NextHash because he always wanted to return to top-level sport. What followed was one of the most remarkable build-up stories in modern cycling. In December 2022, the UCI granted the Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team the ProTeam licence for the 2023 season - and the racing team immediately attracted attention: seven professional victories in the first year, including stage wins and national championship titles, underlined the potential of the newly founded Swiss team.

New name, new chapter

The team took another development step for the 2026 season. Since 2026, the Swiss ProTeam Q36.5 no longer rides on Scott bikes, but on Pinarello racing bikes. At the same time, the Italian bike brand was added to the team name as a title partner: The team is now officially called Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team. The collaboration has a clear structural basis: Pinarello owner Ivan Glasenberg also holds large shares in the cycling clothing brand Q36.5. The two title sponsors Pinarello and Q36.5 are from Italy.

Tom Pidcock: Homecoming on two wheels

The sporting centrepiece of the team is and remains Tom Pidcock. The new partnership also celebrates a renewed collaboration between Pinarello and the Olympic and world champion in cross-country mountain biking, world champion in cyclocross, Tour de France stage winner and Vuelta a España podium rider. For Pidcock, it is a return to familiar companions: "I'm really happy to be back on Pinarello full time. It feels like a homecoming," Pidcock was quoted as saying at the announcement.

His brother Joe Pidcock and Kurt Bogaerts, long-time personal trainer and former INEOS Sporting Director, also followed Tom to Q36.5. Pidcock justified their trust in his very first season with the team: He won two stages at the AlUla Tour, the points classification and his first overall victory in the professional peloton.

Significantly strengthened for 2026

Team leader Pidcock is supported by nine new riders - including the classics specialists Fred Wright and Quinten Hermans, the experienced sprinter Sam Bennett, GC specialist Eddie Dunbar and the talented youngster Thomas Gloag.

Special attention is being paid to Bennett: in November, he was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, which could be remedied by catheter ablation. The hope is that this will bring back the explosiveness that has been missing recently.

Half of the new additions strengthen the team in the high mountains and open up more options for tours, while several other riders have their strengths in hilly and demanding one-day races. The equipment: Pinarello wheels, SRAM gears, Zipp wheels, Vittoria tyres, Abus helmets and Q36.5 jerseys.

First time at the Tour de France

The big goal of the season is clear: Pinarello Q36.5 is the automatic qualifier from the ProTeam ranks for the 2026 Tour de France - as one of the three best-placed ProTeams in the 2025 season according to UCI points. This is the first time ever for the team.

General Manager Doug Ryder said: "Starting at the Tour de France is a moment of great pride for everyone involved in this project - riders, staff and partners alike. The Tour is the biggest showcase of our sport, and with that comes a huge responsibility."

Pidcock will probably ride for the overall classification in France. If he loses time in the classification early on, the Brit, who won the Alpe d'Huez stage in 2022, can also be expected to chase a successful stage.

The goal: home of innovation

The team's ambition is clear: to be the home of innovation in cycling. With a charismatic team leader, two strong Italian partners and a squad fully equipped for Grand Tour ambitions for the first time, 2026 could be the year in which Pinarello Q36.5 finally steps out of the shadow of the WorldTour giants.