After considering an early retirement to sell cheese in Japan or start a croque monsieur food truck, Victor Lafay has extended his career for at least one more year after signing with Unibet Rose Rockets.
Lafay, a former Giro d'Italia and Tour de France stage winner, has struggled ever since his memorable day into San Sebastian at the 2023 Tour, with injury and illness constantly setting him back, having earned a big move to Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale.
Such was the decline that he was losing his enjoyment of the sport, prompting the Frenchman to consider what he wanted to do next. As recently as the Tour of Guangxi – where he finished second on the queen stage and GC – Lafay was still 50-50 over whether he'd stay in cycling.
But after a couple of meetings with Rockets team owner Bas Tietema, whose YouTube channel the team was born out of, Lafay was convinced that he'd found the team for him to reignite his ambitions.
"The story Bas told me, and what this team stands for, made me realise I wasn’t done yet," said Lafay in the team's announcement on Wednesday evening.
"My love for the bike never really disappeared. It just needed the right environment to come alive again. Here, I feel I can be myself and play a real part in something exciting."
Lafay's arrival continues the trend of the Rockets welcoming new stars to their fast-growing project, after Dutch multiple-time Grand Tour stage winners Dylan Groenewegen and Wout Poels came on board for 2026.
It's an ambition of the French-registered team with Dutch roots to one day earn an entry into the Tour de France, where they can bring their at times unorthodox racing style and media approach to the biggest stage. Aside from rediscovering the joy of bike racing, the Tour de France is part of what Lafay will be aiming at next season.
"I dream of getting good results again and of being on the start line of the Tour de France," he said. "I’ve never finished in Paris, and that’s something I still want to experience."
The Frenchman's lead-up to joining the team was detailed in a video on their YouTube channel, which showed an initial rejection from Lafay's management as he decided it was time to end his career, a meeting in Annecy with Tietema where Lafay felt he wanted to "understand him" not just convince him to continue, and finally his arrival in the Netherlands after reconsidering.
"From the first moment we spoke, I felt there was still so much fire left in Victor," said Tietema. "He’s a rider who dares to be different, creative, explosive, and unafraid to follow his own path. In that sense, we really understand each other.
"Cycling can be a conservative world, but people like Victor remind us that personality and emotion belong in this sport. I’m proud he chose to continue his story with us."
Lafay showed that the form is still there with his performances in Guangxi and Tre Valli Varesine, where he was on the attack, and as he approaches his 30th birthday in January, he will look to be back at his best with the Rockets and possibly at the Tour de France once again.
