Info with one day to go

January 27 ^th 2025 - 22:41 [GMT + 3]

The 118 riders of the 2025 AlUla Tour met the Saudi public for the first time on the eve of the race, under the dazzling night skies of Thanaya AlUla. The event will showcase the many attractions of this region in Saudi Arabia, with old wonders like the Unesco site in Hegra where burial tombs are carved in desert rock and modern ones like the mirrored building in Haraya.

Race Director, Jean-Marc Marino, expects “a punchy climber who is at ease in the echelons” to claim the overall win, as there is a summit finish on stage 2, a demanding climb in the final kilometers of stage 4, and three flat days on which the wind can play a decisive role.

British star Tom Pidcock is making his debut in the Q36.5 outfit at the AlUla Tour, where he is one of the main GC favorites. As for the sprints, Soudal’s Tim Merlier and Jayco-AlUla’s Dylan Groenewegen will yet again collide after their 2024 duel.

A mix of visible and invisible challenges

We all have heard plenty of tales of adventurers chasing mirages in the desert. In this 2025 AlUla Tour, there is no need for illusion in order to face an ordeal, as there are plenty of visible and invisible challenges awaiting the riders. “On the 4th stage we are tackling our traditional climb towards Skyviews Harrat Uwairid, with a full kilometre at 17% and a remarkable flat section after the summit,” recounts the event’s Race Director, Jean-Marc Marino. “This year we have a new, proper summit finish in the 2nd stage, at Bir Jaydah Mountain Wirkah. Riders will have to climb it three times over the final 60 kilometres, and this accumulation of efforts will make for a very entertaining stage to watch. The AlUla region has conducted an excellent work at resurfacing the road for the race to go to Bir Jaydah Mountain Wirkah, and we expect a great show to reward their effort.” Those are the visible enemies - now enter the invisible one, the wind. “There are three flat stages,” explains Marino. “On the third one, with the forecasted wind we would only have echelons in the final part. As for the fifth stage, it is set in the very middle of the desert and the whole course is made for splits to happen. Last year, over the same route, the peloton was torn down to pieces and Tim Merlier won out of a 30-man sprint.” All in all, the AlUla Tour Race Director predicts many changes in the overall standings and depicts a very specific portrait of the winner: “A punchy climber who is at ease in the echelons.” 

Tom Pidcock to debut in Q36.5 colors at AlUla Tour

He has been one of the main talking points of the off-season, as his future was the center of many speculations. It was only in December that Tom Pidcock finally departed Ineos Grenadiers to join Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team, a UCI ProTeam from Switzerland that is stepping up its game this season by signing the British star, as well as Latvian sprinter Emils Liepins from Team Picnic-PostNL. Both of them will debut in their new outfit at this AlUla Tour. “It’s my first time racing in this part of the world, and I feel like a tourist,” said Pidcock, jokingly, during the pre-race press conference held at Saudi Arabia’s horse racing epicenter in AlFursan. “I wanted to start this season somewhere different than every year, so we chose to come here. There are some very hard climbs that will make the race very interesting. I feel pretty good, to be honest. My program has changed a bit since I didn’t do any cyclo-cross this winter, and I’ve trained really well, without interruptions nor illnesses. I’m excited and very motivated to start racing with this team.”

Groenewegen and Dunbar headline Jayco-AlUla’s title defense

Last year, Jayco-AlUla scored a very valuable success at the AlUla Tour with Simon Yates claiming the overall victory after being the strongest in the final stage towards Skyviews Harrat Uwayrid. The Briton has since left the Australian squad, yet the team retains its appetite to triumph in what is home soil for its co-sponsor. Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar will be the team’s main card when battling for GC against Tom Pidcock, Team Picnic PostNL’s Frank van den Broek and other remarkable contenders. He will enjoy the support of 2024 MTB world champion Alan Hatherly, who is making his debut as a road cyclist in AlUla. Besides, the rider with most stage victories to his name in this race’s history, Dylan Groenewegen, will try to get back to winning ways after failing to pick any bouquet in the 2024 edition. “There are three chances for the sprint, and we hope to net at least one victory,” declares the Dutch sprinter. “I will have a strong group to support me. We are looking forward to performing well in this AlUla Tour.”

“That feeling of stress when echelons are coming”

Tim Merlier was one of the main victors of the 2024 AlUla Tour, as he achieved two stage wins that set him on track for an outstanding season in which he raised his arms at the finish line a total of 16 times to become the world’s winningest sprinter. The Soudal-Quick Step rider, though, claims he doesn’t have “a recipe to win” in this race, in which he enjoys both “the views” during the stages and “that feeling of stress in the peloton when echelons are coming.” Merlier’s lead-out train features four of the riders that helped him in last year’s successful participation - Ayco Bastiaens, Bert Van Lerberghe, Warre Vangheluwe and Jordi Warlop. “2024 was really good, and this year I hope to do even better,” hints the Belgian cyclist.

Alexander Kristoff: “A great scenario to show your skills in every terrain”

Being one of the first stage races of the season, the AlUla Tour is the event where many riders like UAE Team Emirates’ Adrià Pericas or Saudi National Team’s Ali Jehad Alhassan, both under 20 years of age, will first pin a backnumber in a professional cycling race. On the other hand, we find totemic figures with loads of experience under their belts like Alexander Kristoff, who at age 37 is about to start his 20th season in the UCI ranks by taking part in this event for the very first time. “As a young rider, you need to prove yourself,” analyzes the Norwegian sprinter when questioned about the newcomers. “The AlUla Tour is a great scenario for that - to start showing your skills in every terrain.” Kristoff is a fast man who will contend with the likes of Groenewegen and Merlier in the flat stages, yet he believes some of his Uno-X teammates like Jonas Abrahamsen or Johannes Kulset can play a big role in hillier terrain. “We have quite an okay team, with a few guys who can climb,” he asserts.