Lidl-Trek today announced it has signed Juan Ayuso on a contract extending through 2030. Spanish rider Juan Ayuso will be joining the Lidl-Trek team from the beginning of the 2026 season and arrives from UAE Team Emirates.

The Lidl-Trek team has made the tactical decision of signing Juan Ayuso to support the team’s long-term strategy of becoming the best WorldTour team – a strategy that requires the team to acquire even stronger general classification specialists for Grand Tours like Giro d’Italia and Tour de France.

Juan Ayuso won the 2025 Tirreno-Adriatico and the 2024 Itzulia Basque Country and has won stages in the Giro d’Italia, Vuelta a Espana, and Tour de Suisse. The Spanish rider was ranked second in the general classification of the 2025 Giro d’Italia before internal team disputes derailed his mission of taking the overall victory in the race.

23-year-old Ayuso is a much-talented climber and time trialist and has shown great determinism and consistency in three-week Grand Tours and his arrival significantly strengthens the team’s stage racing ambitions.

By adding Juan Ayuso to the team’s 2026 roster, Lidl-Trek largely becomes a serious player in the pursuit of the top five spots of the general classifications of three-week Grand Tours. Riders such as Mattias Skjelmose and Giulio Ciccone are already noteworthy Lidl-Trek riders who can aim for noteworthy general classification results in one-week races and Grand Tours, but they have both been prone to injuries and misfortune despite their encouraging racing style.

“Joining the Lidl-Trek team is the start of a very important new chapter in my career and I am really excited. Change always brings new energy and ambitions for me and I’m very motivated to keep growing and improving as a rider. I can’t wait to get started,” Ayuso explained to Roadcycling.com.

“From the outside it is obvious the Lidl-Trek team had built a strong identity with a lot of unity and ambition. To me, the long-term project they are creating is quite unique and special and it feels like the place where I can take the next steps in my development as a rider while being surrounded by riders and staff who share common goals. I am very grateful to the team for giving me this opportunity and showing me their confidence,” Ayuso added. 

Team Lidl-Trek is already a much-respected team for its skills in Spring Classics and sprint stages of Grand Tours, where the team can present strong line-ups that can control the action in flat and hilly stages and effective engage in quests for stage victories with riders such as Mads Pedersen and Jonathan Milan. While Milan is continuously improving his skills in mass-sprint finishes, Denmark’s Pedersen has amazed and encouraged fans around the world by engaging in what would be impossible missions to most riders, thereby finding new ways to secure even more stage and race wins and earn points for points classifications in impossible terrain for most sprinters and powerhouses.

“Juan Ayuso is one of the brightest young talents in cycling and he is already one of the best climbers and time trialists in the world, which makes for a very exciting package,” Lidl-Trek General Manager Luca Guercilena explained. “Ayuso still has room to grow at 23 years old, and we are committed to giving him the support he needs to reach his full potential. Bringing him on board is an important step in our team’s long-term vision.”

Ayuso’s 2025 season has been surrounded by much controversy, and the Spanish rider has shown great discomfort with being part of the UAE Team Emirates outfit. Ayuso started this year’s Giro d’Italia as team captain and was ranked second in the general classification when his team chose to prioritize youngster Isaac del Toro over him and Tadej Pogacar even chose to voice his support for del Toro over Ayuso in a written comment on social media.

The decision for Ayuso and UAE Team Emirates to part ways was announced under much controversy during the Vuelta a Espana as it was released at a time which was had not been agreed with Ayuso and featured statements the Spanish rider did not recognize and that remain much disputed.

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