'Maybe three years ago, I didn't want to go, now I'm excited' – How Ineos Grenadiers and Dorian Godon became the perfect match

It would come as little surprise to learn that French riders make up a large chunk of WorldTour rosters, past and present. Yet, for all the success throughout their 15-year history, Ineos Grenadiers are a team that has had very little Les Bleus representation. Just five Frenchmen have represented the British squad since its 2010 launch.

Nicolas Portal, Sylvain Calzati, Kenny Elissonde, Pavel Sivakov, and current rider Axel Laurence. Yet from 2026, Laurence will be joined by not just a key protagonist of the 2025 Tour de France in Kévin Vauquelin, but also national road champion Dorian Godon. It will be the first season that Ineos has three French riders on its books, a change rumoured to be linked to French petrochemical giant TotalEnergies' investment in the team.

Godon was Ineos' first signing of the summer, as he called time on seven seasons at Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale to make the bold leap into a foreign team for the first time.

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"Ineos are an exciting project for me. I always said, I want to ride in a foreign team, as a French cyclist who has raced on French teams for 10 years. I want to discover a new team, and it's one of the most professional," Godon explained in conversation with Cyclingnews at the recent Tour de France Criterium in Singapore.

Notching up six victories, including June's French national road race title and the 1.Pro-level Coppa Bernocchi, in 2025, naturally put the Parisian in the shop window, but Ineos Grenadiers were already vying for Godon's signature in March when the two parties met at Tirreno-Adriatico. A deal was eventually struck after a Giro d'Italia of limited opportunities for Godon, with no new contract forthcoming from his current team.

"It was not my only possibility, but the most attractive one. At one time, I didn't expect that I'd go to Ineos, but now there will be three French riders, so it will be nice to have a French touch in a British team," Godon continued.

"I didn't need convincing. Scott Drawer was my first contact, and we spoke a lot. I signed, and they let me perform [for the rest of the season]."

The 29-year-old's versatile nature and Ineos Grenadiers' newfound aggressive racing style appear on paper to be a well-made match, but rewind the clock a few years, and that might not have been the case. Assessing his new employers' tactics within today's pro cycling landscape, Godon was honest about how the team has changed over recent years.

"Maybe three years ago, I didn't want to go, but now I'm very excited, because they have changed their strategy a little bit. They are more aggressive and maybe more attractive."

Pointing to Tadej Pogačar's cannibal-esque racing style as an example of how races have moved on from Team Sky's mountain train of the 2010s, Godon said: "You need to move a little bit earlier to change the strategy. Cycling races have changed a lot now, and you need to adapt. Not focusing on one rider all the time, it's better to have a plan where everybody can have an opportunity."

Godon believes his attributes suit this philosophy well, whether he's a race leader or domestique in his new colours.

"I will have my chance, there are not so many riders of my profile, maybe Ben Turner [too]. I can win from a small group sprint, and I can help with the GC and breakaways during a Grand Tour. I'm very versatile.

"I want to win a one-day race, for example, like the GP de Québec or a Belgian Classic," Godon added, while also highlighting Spring Classics such as E3 as a potential target.

Asked whether a return to the Tour de France after seven years away is on the mind of the French national champion, Godon, who recently qualified as a physiotherapist after eight years of part-time study, couldn't deny his enthusiasm should the chance for another lap of l'Hexagone arise.

"It would be nice to go again," he confessed. "I went seven years ago, but I didn't have the engine I have now."

Conscious of the inevitable battle for places, Godon added: "It's a big team, with so many good riders for the TTT in Barcelona, for example.

"It could be a dream to win in Barcelona and take the yellow jersey. I'm not so bad in a time trial, and I will progress, for sure, with the team's development and their time trialling talents."

Whether Godon will make the cut for Ineos Grenadiers' Tour squad remains to be seen, but the French national champion's adaptable racing style and strong finish to 2025 look set to cast him as a key part of their early-season endeavours, something neither party might have imagined just a few years ago.