'Performances aren’t what you’d expect from a cyclist of his calibre' – Mystery surrounds Juan Ayuso’s 2026 race form

After an excellent start to his time with Lidl-Trek, Juan Ayuso’s 2026 season didn’t go so well, with the 24-year-old failing to meet expectations; now his team are examining the rider’s data to ensure he is in top form for 2027.

After four years with UAE Team Emirates-XRG, Ayuso’s move to Lidl-Trek was one of the headlines of last year’s transfer season, and he was expected to challenge for the podium in Grand Tours. Though his overall victory at the Volta ao Algarve in February was a good start, his season has tailed off somewhat, with diminishing results.

A crash forced him to abandon Paris-Nice, and he failed to finish Itzulia Basque Country, with tests revealing a viral infection which kept him out of the Ardennes Classics in April.

Hopes were high when he took third overall at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (formerly Critérium du Daupiné) after finishing second on the two mountain stages, but seventh place at the Tour de France, behind his former UAE teammate, Tadej Pogačar, was a disappointment.

Since then, he has struggled, crashing out of the GP Cycliste de Montréal and only cracking the top 10 of any race at the Tour of Guangxi, the final race of his season, where he was sixth overall.

His lacklustre season has caused some head-scratching at Lidl-Trek, where they have been unable to pinpoint why Ayuso is unable to deliver the results they had expected.

"He is the first to know that the year hasn’t gone well for him," Ayuso’s coach, Aritz Arberas, told Spanish journalist Daniel Arribas’s Substack.

"Something’s wrong, that’s clear; something’s not right, because what we’re seeing isn’t normal. The verifiable data we have from training doesn’t add up. The sessions have gone well; Juan has sacrificed a lot and invested a great deal to be in top form, with seasons at altitude and specific preparation for the World Championships, but then the race comes and things don’t go his way. His performances aren’t what you’d expect from a cyclist of his calibre.

"He’s sad, of course. He’s an ambitious and very hardworking guy. When we talk after the races, he asks me, 'Aritz, what do you think? What do you think is going on?’ And I tell him, 'I don’t know, Juan, we don’t have the answer.'"

"Right now, we’re in the analysis phase, trying to pinpoint the problem to understand what’s happening. And in that process, we’re looking at everything, from his health, with any potential medical issues, to his training data."

While Ayuso has been struggling, his team have been busy in the market, signing a raft of talent, including GC podium finisher Felix Gall, who joins from Decathlon-CMA CGM after a season where he finished second at the Giro d’Italia and third in the Vuelta a España.

Despite the Austrian’s arrival, there should be no change to what is expected from Ayuso.

"Juan’s goals for 2027 have to be the same as in 2026: to compete in a Grand Tour, one-day classics, and week-long races, which is what he’s done in his final years as a professional," Arberas continued.

"He’s a top rider, one of those from whom victories are expected, and he knows it; he’s fully aware of it."

Despite his experience and a palmarès which already includes 18 victories, Ayuso is still only 24 and, theoretically at least, he has plenty of time to mature into the Grand Tour challenger he was expected to. But with the constant influx of hungry, young talent into the sport, the pressure must surely be on.

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