Maxim Van Gils has only been a Red-Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider for a week but he's already noticing the effects of joining one of the peloton's richest teams.
All new equipment, significantly more staff and a different language are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what the Belgian is settling into. But he felt it was the right time to leave Lotto Dstny with an opportunity to join Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe being too enticing to pass up.
"They speak another language, there are a lot more people. But I'm also surprised when I look back to Lotto and what they did with just a little budget," said Van Gils to a small group of media on Saturday.
"Actually, here for one job, you have 10 guys. At Lotto, there was one. But in the end, we did the same races. So we also have to respect teams like Lotto, they manage even though it's difficult.
"Now in WorldTour, the budgets are getting bigger and bigger. It's modern cycling, but still, teams with a smaller budget have to follow up. In a team like Lotto, you have to wait a few days sometimes for physio. Here you have someone waiting on the sofa, not doing nothing, but is ready to treat you."
Van Gils spent most of the morning alone ahead of the team's media day in Mallorca, from breakfast to his morning spin on the time trial bike. He donned the same Red Bull helmet but stood out in the Belgian national kit he wore.
He's yet to fully embed into the team but that should come with time. However, he's certain already that what surrounds him is a team of higher quality. While maintaining respect for the team that oversaw his journey into the pro ranks, Van Gils is confident in the Red Bull environment extracting his full potential.
"Better teammates? Also, my teammates at Lotto were not bad," said Van Gils when asked if an upstep in personnel would be the biggest change from Lotto.
"But they are young, and it's always difficult as a leader when you want to focus on and get the result, and not tell everybody what to do. I think it'll be easier with maybe a little bit stronger teammates."
Being on the train before it leaves
Van Gils was presented as one of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe's key riders at the press conference, sitting alongside Grand Tour captain Primož Roglič, CEO Ralph Denk and head sport director Rolf Aldag.
The 25-year-old has significant ambitions and didn't want to miss out on the chance presented to him after such a strong 2024 season. He also believes there's a higher ceiling for success at Red Bull, with goals he couldn't have achieved at Lotto now looking attainable.
"Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe are really growing. I really wanted to be on the train at the station before it left," admitted Van Gils. "I wanted to be here before the team was super big. I think it's a lot nicer to be in the process and see how the team grows. That's why I wanted the change now.
"They have lots of ambitions, and for me too, I'm still young, with a lot of personal goals, but also team goals. In the future, it's my dream to win a Grand Tour with the team as a teammate, not me, because I don't have the capacity to do this. But I want to be there and experience it. At Lotto, it will be never possible, and here it's still hard, but we can try."
Van Gils actually isn't likely to ride a Grand Tour in 2025 with Denk revealing "We have to discuss later on. But first is the main focus on the Classics" for the Belgian. He did rule out racing the Tour de France in support of Roglič, however, a stint at the Giro or Vuelta could be possible.
The Belgian also revealed the effect that former teammates deciding to depart Lotto Dstny had on his decision to leave after signing a two-year extension back in March.
"The moment I [re]signed with Lotto Dstny, we had a really nice team, very much like family for me," said Van Gils. "But then guys like Florian [Vermeersch], [Victor] Campenaerts and [Andreas] Kron, they were leaving, and at this moment, maybe I start thinking about it."
He did admit it wasn't as simple as a decision being made in one moment and that it was instead a "process". Van Gils also didn't rule out one day returning to Lotto, with the Belgian team still holding a special place for him.
"No, it was a process, it was not on one day you decide this. I guess Lotto will always stay special for me. Maybe in the future, I don't know if it's possible but at the end of a career, I go back," he said.
"I had to really think about it and what I want in my next three years. Because you are not a cyclist for a long time now, people of 31 they're already old in cycling. I think my best years are coming now and I just wanted to spend them in a really good environment that has really big goals."
While a Grand Tour appearance is a secondary focus for Van Gils and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, he will slot in immediately as a leader for the hilly Classics, taking up the mantle at Strade Bianche, where he was third last year, before leading at the Ardennes trio of race from Amstel Gold to Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Denk and Aldag have been outspoken in the team's ambitions to win all year round with a heavily bolstered one-day squad. Van Gils is a huge part of that and will have to live up to the hype he's built this past season and through his mid-contract move.
"He's shown already very big results in one-day races - Flèche Wallonne, Milan-San Remo and Liège," said Denk.
"Hopefully we can make the next step. He was already on the podium at Flèche and at Strade. Maxim is still young and we have a great performance environment to support his talent in the best way.
"If I can change one podium to a victory, that will be really, really great," said Van Gils of his goals for 2025. "There's no better feeling for the cyclist is winning. Next year, I really want to put my hands up in the air."
