News
‘It’s not like you can easily replace someone like Simon’ – Sepp Kuss to retain same schedule and priorities for 2026 following Yates’ sudden retirement
Sepp Kuss’ 2026 Plan After a Key Retirement Shows How Grand Tour Support Roles Are Changing
Opening Paragraph: A major Grand Tour lieutenant stepping away forces teams to answer an awkward question: can you replace a rider who has spent years building trust, timing, and instinct around a specific leader? Sepp Kuss keeping broadly the same schedule and priorities for 2026—while reshuffling where he fits inside the Grand Tour calendar—matters to everyday cyclists because it highlights what the modern “support rider” job has become: not just watts, but repeatable recovery, resilience across three-week arcs, and a professional approach to preparation that amateurs can borrow from.
Context & Background
In the last decade, Grand Tour teams have become less romantic and more specialized. The strongest squads don’t simply collect climbers; they build systems. Riders learn each other’s pacing cues, radio habits, and risk tolerances on descents and in crosswinds. When one cornerstone exits suddenly, the first response is often not a complete tactical reinvention, but a doubling down on the riders who already understand the system.
That’s why the “same schedule, same priorities” line is revealing. It suggests stability is now a competitive asset. Teams would rather keep a proven routine—training blocks, altitude camps, warm-weather races, and specific Grand Tour assignments—than improvise a brand-new leadership structure. For fans, it can look conservative. For performance staff, it’s risk management.
It also underlines a broader trend: Grand Tours are increasingly won in the margins of fatigue. The decisive moments still look explosive on TV, but they are built on boring excellence—nutrition timing, sleep, and a stable training rhythm. The removal of one veteran support rider doesn’t just change a mountain stage; it changes the day-to-day texture of a leader’s race. That’s not easily replaced by “another strong climber.”
Gear & Practical Impact
The practical lesson for non-pro cyclists is that consistency beats reinvention. If your next season has a single big target—your first stage race, a long gravel event, a mountainous fondo—your preparation should look more like a sequence of repeatable habits than a dramatic overhaul of equipment every month. A structured way to monitor training load helps keep those habits honest, and a device like the Garmin Forerunner 255 can track HR trends, sleep, and recovery in a way that mirrors how modern programs watch for overreach.
- Built with a slim design and an always-on, full-color display that’s light on the wrist and easy to read even in direct sunlight — with available sizes of 46 mm and 41 mm
- Forerunner 255 provides up to 14 days of battery life in smartwatch mode and up to 30 hours in GPS mode for a full picture of your health — from sleep to training
- Morning report summarizes your sleep, HRV status and daily workout suggestion in one place as soon as you wake up (This device is intended to give an estimate of your activity and metrics)
- Get ready for your next race with training tips, personalized daily suggested workouts and completion time predictions based on course details, weather and performance
- View your entire week of daily suggested workouts, which adapt after every run to match your performance and recovery
Because Grand Tour support is fundamentally about repeatability, indoor training matters more than ever—especially for riders balancing work and weather. The point isn’t to chase hero intervals; it’s to accumulate quality without adding chaos. A smart trainer such as the Wahoo KICKR Core Smart Trainer is useful precisely because it makes the “boring base” and controlled tempo sessions doable when daylight or roads don’t cooperate.
- Real you can feel: KICKR MOVE delivers an entirely new dimension of ride feel. With built-in, dual axis movement and KICKR’s legendary flywheel technology, KICKR MOVE allows your bike to travel freely when powering through indoor rides and workouts. The result is a more engaging, more comfortable and more realistic riding experience than ever before.
- Next Level Experience: From pushing out of the saddle on an explosive attack, to finding your rhythm during a tough endurance effort, when you move, KICKR MOVE moves with you. This freedom mirrors what you feel outdoors, bringing next-level realism and comfort to your indoor rides or lock in your position for focused efforts.
- Ultimate Comfort: KICKR MOVE provides next-level comfort to your indoor cycling rides; the movement unleashed by its fore-aft motion reduces fatigue and improves overall efficiency, allowing you to train longer and harder than ever before.
- Lock-Out Option: When you want stability or a dialed-in position, KICKR MOVE features an option to prevent fore-aft movement and lock KICKR MOVE into place.
- Erg Easy Ramp: Need to pause the workout for any reason. ERG Easy Ramp gets you back into the effort gradually instead of requiring a leg-busting effort to hit your power numbers.
Another pro lesson: fueling is part of the job, not an accessory. The difference between being present in week three and being invisible often comes down to how well a rider manages carbohydrates day after day. For training rides where you want predictable intake, something like Maurten Drink Mix 320 fits the modern shift toward high-carb fueling without turning every ride into guesswork.
- ELECTROLYTE REPLACEMENT - Replaces the electrolytes lost in sweat with a balanced profile of sodium, potassium, and glucose for fast, effective hydration during training and endurance activity
- FAST HYDRATION & ENDUARNCE SUPPORT: Optimized sodium‑to‑glucose ratio enables rapid absorption for steady energy and improved endurance. Ideal for running, cycling, gym sessions, team sports, and high‑sweat conditions.
- CLEAN INGREDIENTS ONLY - Made with real food ingredients and free from artificial colors, sweeteners, preservatives, or isolates to reduce GI distress and support clean, consistent performance.
- SINGLE‑SERVE PACKETS FOR ON‑THE‑GO HYDRATION: Convenient, travel essential packets mix easily with 12–16 oz of water for fast hydration anywhere—perfect for travel, races, gym bags, hiking, and long training days.
- PASSION FRUIT ORANGE GUAVA: Vibrant tropical real‑fruit blend made with clean ingredients; vegan, non‑GMO, gluten‑free, dairy‑free, and Kosher.
Support riders also spend huge time on exposed roads, often at the front, often in high-speed transitions where crashes happen. That’s not just a pro problem; it mirrors how many recreational riders actually get hurt—on “easy” days, in traffic, or when attention drifts. A rear radar light like the Garmin Varia RTL515 Radar Light helps riders hold a steadier line and make earlier decisions when cars approach, which matters whether you’re doing base miles or commuting.
- Rearview radar with tail light provides awareness of vehicles approaching from behind up to 153 yards (140 meters) away
- Pairs seamlessly with your Edge bike computer and compatible smartphone as well as select Garmin wearables or the radar display unit
- When used with your compatible smartphone, the Varia app provides graphics — plus tone and vibration alerts — that indicate approaching cars
- When used with a compatible smartphone, Varia radar integrates with third-party apps such as Ride with GPS to overlay your maps with rearview radar alerts
- Daylight visibility up to 1 mile alerts motorists to your presence as soon as possible
If you’re riding more volume, small contact-point issues become season-defining. Pros have staff; most of us don’t. A reliable, long-distance bib short can be the difference between building fitness and constantly “managing” soreness. The Pearl iZUMi Men’s Attack Bib Short (or the equivalent women’s model in the same line) is the kind of no-drama piece that suits long training blocks where comfort needs to be predictable, not precious.
- COMFORTABLE & FUNCTIONAL: Our Attack bib biking short is your must-have for comfort whether you’re on a long bike ride or a short sprint, offering you the ability to remain cool, dry, & comfortable
- DESIGNED FOR PERFORMANCE: We’ve taken many of the features found in our most sophisticated bibs and combined them in this value-packed short, including comfortable raw-edge bib straps for a seamless feel
- HIGH TECH COMFORT: Men's SELECT Escape 1:1 Chamois pad provides optimal moisture transfer and breathability
- HIGH QUALITY MATERIALS: Main Body: 80% Recycled Nylon, 20% Elastane; Bib: 75% Nylon, 25% Elastane. Use simple detergents with no additives. The general rule of thumb is the simpler the better
- OBSESSIVE INNOVATION: PEARL iZUMi innovates so you ride happier, more comfortably, drier, faster, warmer, and safer. Innovation not for innovation’s sake, but for the goal of making each product better than the last
When schedules shift—say you replace one marquee event with another—the best riders don’t just train differently; they recover differently. A simple tool like the Theragun Mini can help with routine muscle maintenance between rides, especially for amateurs stacking consecutive days and trying to show up fresh rather than “surviving.”
- SCIENCE-BACKED MASSAGE THERAPY ON-THE-GO: Theragun Mini features relaxing percussive massage therapy for alleviating persistent pain, stress and tension in your body. Compact and lightweight, it’s the perfect companion for effective relief wherever life takes you
- INCLUDES 1 MASSAGE ATTACHMENT: Theragun Mini Gray comes with 1 scientifically designed massage attachment (Standard Ball) for all-over body massage.
- EASY & EFFECTIVE RELIEF WHEN YOU’RE ON THE MOVE: Designed for on-the-go convenience with one-button control, 3 built-in speeds and an easy-to-hold ergonomic grip.
- BLUETOOTH-ENABLED FOR PERSONALIZED RECOVERY RECOMMENDATIONS: Coach by Therabody in the Therabody app uses your goals and daily activity data from your wearable to create intelligent recovery recommendations that adapt to your needs throughout the day and help you stay consistent with recovery. Easily connects with your favorite wearable device or activity tracker like Garmin, Apple Health, Strava or Google Fit.
- SCIENCE-BACKED: Science is the foundation of Therabody's product development, with 26 completed studies, 25 ongoing, and 75,000 supporting scientific articles. Every product is scientifically validated from concept to completion for trusted results. Theragun Mini (2 nd Generation) is an FDA-registered medical device.
Finally, if you’re doing long climbs, the basic maintenance matters because mechanical stress adds up when you’re tired. A compact torque tool prevents the kind of slow, annoying problems that ruin consistency. The Park Tool ATD-1.2 Adjustable Torque Driver is especially useful for modern carbon parts where overtightening is an expensive mistake and undertightening becomes a safety issue.
- Shop quality, adjustable torque driver that limits torque applied to fasteners, preventing overtightening and damage to lightweight components
- Adjusts to apply 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5, or 6 Newton Meter (Nm) of torque when rotating clockwise
- All metal internal construction for long life
- Model number: QKATD12
Trend Analysis
The bigger story here is that teams increasingly treat Grand Tours as systems engineering. A leader’s chances depend on having multiple riders who can execute roles under fatigue: pacing, bottle delivery, positioning, and calm decision-making when plans collapse. When an established support rider exits, the gap is as much psychological and logistical as it is physical.
Expect to see more teams respond by developing “redundancy” in their rosters: riders who can do two jobs well rather than one job perfectly. That changes racing. It can make stages more controlled, but it also opens the door for opportunists when a team’s redundancy fails—illness, crashes, a bad day, or simply misreading the race. For spectators, it can look like predictability until it suddenly doesn’t.
For everyday riders, the analogous shift is toward modular preparation. More cyclists are mixing road, gravel, and indoor training depending on time and safety. They’re using data to stay consistent, but also prioritizing comfort and recovery so they can train more often. That approach mirrors what top squads have learned: one heroic ride doesn’t build a season; ten good rides do.
There’s also a cultural angle. The “support rider” role has gained public recognition, and that changes how fans understand cycling. People now talk about domestiques the way they talk about key defenders in football: not background labor, but mission-critical craft. That recognition filters down. Group rides and clubs are starting to value riders who pace steadily, close gaps smoothly, and keep everyone safe—not just those who sprint for town signs.
What This Tells Us About Where Cycling Is Heading
Cycling is moving toward a more sustainable definition of performance: repeatability, health, and risk management. The calendar will keep evolving, and individual careers will pivot quickly. The riders and teams that succeed will be the ones with habits that survive disruption—whether that disruption is a retirement, a crash, or simply the realities of modern racing schedules.
For the rest of us, the takeaway is straightforward. Build your season around consistency, not novelty. Choose a few pieces of gear that make training and recovery easier to repeat—like dependable indoor options, safety tech for traffic-heavy roads, and basic maintenance tools—then focus on the unglamorous work: fueling, sleep, and steady volume. That’s the same foundation that lets a support rider show up in week three, do the job, and make the difference when it counts.
Kristina, CyclingTrend.com
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