George Hincapie, a former US Pro road national champion and Tour de France stage winner, and his brother Rich Hincapie are among a collaboration of friends who plan to make a return to the peloton in 2026 with a men's road team, with the intent to register as a UCI ProTeam for international competition.
The story was first broken by Daniel Benson's Substack page on Wednesday evening. In one week, a formal announcement will confirm details about the new US men's pro road team that has input from the Hincapie duo, who last owned and operated the Continental-level Hincapie Sportswear squad in 2020.
Cyclingnews has learned from team leadership that a trio of current and former US road pros - Alex Howes, Ty Magner and Joey Rosskopf - will co-direct the team, and have already been involved in selecting the first 11 riders on a projected squad of 20.
A multi-year commitment from a title sponsor is expected to be confirmed next week, which will support the team for the next several years as it builds toward a move to the WorldTour level.
The team has a unique setup with Rosskopf, Magner and Howes sharing management duties including interviewing potential riders and making final selections. The rider roster is under development, and Cyclingnews understands that at least half the squad will be comprised of US riders, with the names confirmed at a later date.
Rosskopf, a former US Pro road champion, is currently a team director with Project Echelon Racing. Both Magner and Howes are both actively racing, Magner racing a final road season with L39ION of Los Angeles and Howes competing on an off-road calendar with support from Cannondale.
The team name, including title sponsor and key staff will be revealed June 18 with a press release. The team is expected to be based in Girona, Spain, so it was not known at this time if the squad would be registered in the US or in Spain.
Note: This article was updated to recognise that Daniel Benson was the first to break this story.
