A week after completing the Vuelta a España, British racer Ethan Hayter climbed into his familiar aero position for a run at a medal in the elite men's time trial at the Road World Championships in Montreal this week.
There was no magic left at the end of his season, however, as the 28-year-old finished 18th, a little more than two minutes behind now four-time world champion Remco Evenepoel.
Hayter's third trip as an elite to a World Championship is now over. He admitted after the contest Sunday that he still carried some jet lag from the travel across the Atlantic, but his work was done. Just hours after the finish, he boarded a flight back to Europe for home, which he hadn't seen in a month.
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"I still didn't really recover from the Vuelta the last month, to be honest. So, I kind of had the feeling I could ride my tempo, but I couldn't really go any faster," Hayter told a small group of media, including Cyclingnews, after the finish on Sunday.
"I didn't really find a great rhythm in the corners. You know, the roads are pretty bad quality, and having half the road is really hard to judge with the cones, and you don't quite carry the speed the same as a normal road."
The first and last 6km of the 39.2km race against the clock were a bit tricky, with a succession of turns, tight corners and potholes, while the return section was all uphill.
"I kicked a little bit on the small climbs. I had a small crash in one corner, but I just hit the barrier. I was OK," Hayter said.
Results-wise, Hayter had a lucrative first year for Soudal-QuickStep in 2025, scoring five victories, all in time trials. This season he repeated as British time trial champion, his only notch in the win column.
However, his best ride of the year gave him a podium spot on his Vuelta a España debut, narrowly missing the race's first red leader's jersey in Monaco just nine hundredths of a second slower than Tadej Pogačar.
In just his second Grand Tour of his career, the Vuelta's high heat proved to be a challenge. After making a statement on stage 1, he raced aggressively, making several breakaways. At least cooler weather was on his side in Canada, with temperatures reduced by half from the searing heat in Spain, which nearly caused him to pull out in the second week.
In between the Vuelta and Worlds, he said he kept track of the success of his brother, Leo Hayter, who was racing at Tour de Luxembourg for Modern Adventure Pro Racing. He earned his first podium in four years on stage 4, racing to third place on the day.
"It's really nice to see him back racing, and not just the time trial. He was in the break the day before, and it's good to see him getting stuck in and enjoying it," Hayter said with a smile.
"Hopefully, he'll just keep taking it step by step, and then enjoying it."
Leo Hayter was the only rider on Modern Adventure's 21-rider roster with a one-year contract; the others signed for two seasons. He is expected to continue racing in 2027, but with another programme.
For the elder Hayter, his next priority was time at home with his girlfriend and dog, mentioned in that order. He would also reboot for a fresh commitment in 2027, which would be confirmed "hopefully soon"; that announcement is expected to be for a spot on Pinarello-Q36.5, as reported by Daniel Benson and other media.
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