UAE to challenge Visma | Lease a Bike's spring dominance: Vermeersch joins as new signing

Florian Vermeersch is officially joining UAE-Team Emirates as of January 1, 2025. The 25-year-old Belgian from Lotto-Dstny had agreed to the move months ago, and his new team has announced in a press release that he has signed a two-season contract.

Vermeersch has been a professional in the WorldTour since the summer of 2020, and he has particularly shown his potential in one-day races. While in 2021 he primarily competed in second-tier classics, he made a significant impression by finishing second in the grueling Paris-Roubaix at the end of that year. Although he had to concede victory to Sonny Colbrelli, he finished ahead of Mathieu van der Poel.

In 2022, Vermeersch was active in almost every classic and secured his first professional win at the Antwerp Port Epic. While he did not achieve major results in the Monuments, he demonstrated his readiness for the next level by finishing second in the gravel World Championships and winning the Serenissima Gravel at the end of 2023. He started this season with high hopes, but his first race in Murcia ended in disaster as he broke his femur and was sidelined for a total of four months.

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Vermeersch in Paris-Roubaix 2021

UAE Team Emirates sees Vermeersch as a leader for the classics

At UAE-Team Emirates, Vermeersch will have a new opportunity to showcase his talents in the spring of 2025. The Belgian, who has previously raced in the Tour de France twice and the Vuelta a España once, is expected to take on a leadership role. With Tim Wellens, Nils Politt, and new recruit Jhonatan Narváez joining the team, UAE aims to challenge the dominance of Visma | Lease a Bike and Van der Poel in the spring classics.

"I am very happy and honored to be joining this team," said Vermeersch. "This is the best team in the peloton, so it’s a dream come true. I’m glad the team has full confidence in me despite my crash earlier this year." Team manager Mauro Gianetti has high expectations for his new recruit: "Florian has proven himself to be a very strong rider, and he will strengthen our spring squad. We hope for many successful years together."