The Van Dijke brothers lower expectations for Red Bull debut – And why isn’t Pithie racing Omloop?

With Jan Tratnik as the defending champion, all eyes are on the experienced Slovenian and his new team, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, ahead of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. But the German powerhouse has plenty of other cards to play as the spring classics truly kick off this Saturday. In an interview with Omroep Zeeland, Tim and Mick van Dijke are certainly not doing their best to nuance their roles.

With new spring classics contender Laurence Pithie still at altitude training, others will take center stage for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe during Opening Weekend. Of the seven riders on the start list, only three were already part of the ambitious cycling project last season: sprinter Jordi Meeus, lead-out Ryan Mullen, and Spanish puncheur Roger Adrià. Joining them on Saturday, alongside Tratnik and the Van Dijke brothers (all three of whom came over from Visma | Lease a Bike), is Oier Lazkano from Movistar.

That lineup promises excitement. Tratnik has made it clear in previous conversations with IDLProCycling.com that his new team is setting high ambitions. He personally feels “better than last year” and is impressed with all the new arrivals. “What do I expect from them? Hard to say, but I hope they win as much as possible. We have strong young riders in the squad. I'm really looking forward to the coming week in Flanders and can’t wait to get started. I’m very happy with my power numbers, and everything in terms of health and training has gone perfectly.”

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Jan Tratnik

Tim and Mick van Dijke will race the Omloop, but Pithie will not

Everything looks promising for Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, with Tratnik, Lazkano, and the Van Dijke brothers expected to be in the mix with the best. If the race comes back together, Meeus could be a sprint option. However, Laurence Pithie, last spring’s breakout star, is absent due to an altitude training camp. His season will kick off later at Milan-San Remo, allowing him extra time to train in Australia after his campaign there.

With that in mind, Mick and Tim van Dijke are eager to seize their opportunity. It’s a battle for leadership within Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe’s classics squad. "It’s no longer about sacrificing ourselves in the first hundred kilometers and pulling out," they explained, echoing comments from an interview with this website in January. "Now, we have a much freer role, especially in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. Jan Tratnik is wearing number 1, but we don’t have a single designated leader. We can play multiple cards," Mick van Dijke said.

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Laurence Pithie skips the opening weekend

Mick van Dijke had some knee trouble, but the brothers are ready for the classics

Mick van Dijke had some minor knee issues before an altitude camp, but specialists in Salzburg helped resolve the problem. That allowed both brothers to train on Tenerife ahead of the classics season. "The Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix are our biggest goals," Tim emphasized. Mick added, "Think of this weekend as our ‘warm-up round.’ Tim has raced Omloop before. Of course, we’d love to show ourselves already, but we also have to be patient."

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