When Soudal-QuickStep knew that Remco Evenepoel would leave for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and they began to rebuild their Classics squad for 2026, Jasper Stuyven's name was the top of the list of riders team manager Jurgen Foré wanted to help him reboot the Belgian team.
Stuyven is now 33 but is still a Classics contender and still highly motivated. He felt ready for a change after 12 years with the Lidl-Trek programme and quickly bought into the project of creating a new chapter at Soudal-QuickStep. He is one of the most fascinating rider transfers for the 2026 season.
His new role is complex and his responsibilities are many. He will help out Tim Merlier in the Tour de France sprints and fast Classics, mentor young but still raw talent Paul Magnier, and also hunt for his own success.
Like the products of title sponsor Soudal, Stuyven is set to be the glue of the Belgian team, who intends to seal over any gaps and create unity and success as they take on Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Mads Pedersen in the biggest cobbled Classics.
Stuyven is a natural role model for his teammates. For him, leaving for training on time is important as is doing the hard miles in training. He doesn't suffer fools gladly because he knows the work needed to compete as a successful team in the Classics.
"I felt it was time for a change and when I started talking with this team and I talked with Lidl-Trek, it became even more clear that it was," Stuyven explained to Cyclingnews and a few other media at the team's recent Calpe training camp.
"With Remco leaving, I think the team wanted to go back to what they really love, what's in their DNA, and get back to where they were a few years ago.
"When I talked with Jurgen, he wanted to rebuild a Classics squad, but I told him that we needed to have a number of strong riders to support the project because the gap to success was so big. I was happy when Dylan van Baarle signed and so did other riders. It was important for me to know that we would have a team that is going to be strong, with both young talents and experienced guys."
Stuyven is Soudal-QuickStep's new road captain but he still has personal ambitions.
His 2021 Milan-San Remo victory stands out on his palmarès but he also has a long list of Classics results that were often close to being victories. He can read a race like few others, knows how to position himself before key sectors of the Classics and is a fast finisher.
"Being there to fight for victory is something that I still want to do," he said with conviction.
"It gives me a lot of joy and if I didn't believe I could do well and if I had lost the fighting spirit, I wouldn't be able to put in all the work."
'Hopefully we're not scared to take on Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar in the race'
Stuyven spent the second half of 2025 studying his future Soudal-QuickStep teammates as he counted down his time at Lild-Trek. He quickly noticed Paul Magnier's positioning mistakes and how the team were often forced to race reactively instead of being proactive and openly aggressive.
"QuickStep were the standard. Everyone looked at them, it's crazy to see, to see how it changed and that Lidl-Trek became known as the best team for positioning in the Classics," Stuyven said, revealing his inside Classics knowledge.
"Hopefully we're not scared to take on Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar in the race. If you always stay behind and always try to rely on other teams, it means you are always one step behind. It's better to be in front."
Stuyven hopes that he can help Magnier fast-track his Classics career. The Frenchman is only 21 and won 19 races in 2025 but stumbled in the big cobbled Classics.
"He makes it look easy," Stuyven says in admiration before offering more critical advice.
"I think he just misses a bit of maturity, which is not a big problem. Jonathan Milan [Stuyven's former teammate at Lidl-Trek] was also still quite young two years ago. I think Paul knows how to handle it. He's also super open and eager to learn.
"I noticed that he made mistakes in races, so still being so successful was impressive. I think he has a lot more potential."
Stuyven seems a perfect signing for Soudal-QuickStep, he is a rider they were missing.
He already seems at home in the Wolfpack but could not stop himself taking a brief shot at Lidl-Trek, kickstarting one of the big-team rivalries of the spring of 2026.
Lidl-Trek have a more GC-focused team for 2026 as they try to take on their super team rivals on all terrains. Mads Pedersen remains for the Classics but Daan Hoole has moved to Decathlon CMA CGM, while Tim Declercq and Ryan Gibbons have retired. Lidl-Trek are hoping Jakob Söderqvist, Albert Philipsen and Mathias Vacek will step-up in 2026.
"It's interesting because everyone who is good in positioning on Lidl-Trek left…" Stuyven said with a little malice.
"Mads is good but he doesn't need to do positioning. They still have guys who will win races and impress in the finals but I don't think they will be a benchmark in some races. They rely on the young guys to step up or on Edward Theuns but he can't do it all.
"It will be interesting for me to see how that changes things in the Classics."
