Peter Øxenberg may likely have first made his name in the cycling world by emulating an illustrious Danish compatriot - both riding for the country's very same continental outfit, ColoQuick, and then taking the same famed KOM up the Coll de Rates in Alicante, too. However, the 19-year-old's now made his transition onto Ineos Grenadiers' WorldTour squad and is beginning his own pro career in earnest.
As for the Col de Rates record, Øxenberg followed the wheeltracks of none other than Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), who had taken the KOM record in 2018, only for Tadej Pogačar then to beat it at his UAE Team Emirates-XRG training camp. However, by this point, Øxenberg had already secured his move over to Ineos.
This was back in June of 2024. But as Ineos finally ensured they had a development pathway for their U23 riders by partnering with Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank, Øxenberg stepped down from the WT squad and into his under-23 career to try and gain some experience throughout 2025.
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He's raced a mix of the Baby Giro, Vuelta a Burgos, all with the main goal of the Tour de L'Avenir, where he finished ninth overall behind the likes of Paul Seixas (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) and Jarno Widar (Lotto). But after August, he moved into a trainee role on the WT squad - and he is already finding his feet.
He spent almost all of Wednesday in the breakaway on stage 2 of the Tour of Guangxi, earning himself a stint in the King of the Mountains polka-dot jersey. The six-man group fractured in front and were all eventually mopped up before the bunch sprint, won by Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep). But it was a solid day nonetheless for the young Dane.
"The first part on the flat and the rainy part, it was more like Denmark, you know, it was raining all the time, so it was good. Then the hilly part suits me better, so I was feeling better," he told reporters in Jingxi.
"It's really big for me to wear a jersey. It's my third WorldTour race now, and I just took the step up, so I'm really stoked to be the leader of the mountains classification and be in the polka-dot jersey.
"And why not go for it until the end, no? Maybe I can get in some more breakaways to take more mountains points."
As Ineos undergo major changes in the off-season, with Geraint Thomas retiring, long-term staff members Oli Cookson and Zak Dempster departing for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Dave Brailsford coming back in a greater capacity, it's important not to let the likes of Øxenberg slip away and ensure their development is maintained.
"It has been quite a smooth transition. I have been working with all the staff of Ineos and have been riding on the Lotto Kern-Haus team to get more experience, and it's been good for me, yes," he said.
"It was clear that was the step I would take, and in the late summer, that came into place. It was planned at the beginning of the season already, and then I had the longer goal of L'Avenir, after which I would step up."
While shy, the 19-year-old didn't stop himself from dreaming big about a future as a GC racer, as eventually happened with two-time Tour winner Vingegaard. But having already felt the fury of a WorldTour peloton in his first appearances at the top level in the Canada one-day races, he is well aware that it will take serious time and effort.
"It's quite a big step up, but it's been good. There is quite a bit of difference because it's quite a bit faster here in the WorldTour peloton compared to the Under 23s. I have to get used to it, but it's good," said Øxenberg.
"Right now, I'm probably a puncheur, climber type of guy, but I hope to be a GC rider. It's a question of time and more experience, and maybe just getting a bit older and gaining some more power to get there."
While also hoping to hold onto the KOM jersey through the incoming harder stages in China, a solid climbing performance on the queen stage 5 to NongLa could also see him move up into the battle for the overall, as he is currently sitting in fourth overall, and only behind sprinters.
However, the likes of Óscar Rodríguez, AJ August or Michael Leonard could also step up for this very young Ineos team racing in China: the average age of the remaining five riders is just 21.
