«I am very happy to join the UAE Team Emirates – commented Benoit Cosnefroy – and I'm thrilled to be part of the best team in the world. When Mauro Gianetti presented the project to me, I understood that it was the ideal challenge for me. at this stage of my career."
With these few words, the French rider, who from 2016 to 2025 he always ran in the same group (first Ag2R La Mondiale and then Decathlon AG2R), commented on his move to the Emirati team. His 2025, which began with a thousand obstacles, reopened convincingly in the spring only to be abruptly interrupted again. in summerThirteen days of racing and one victory. Yet this earned him the call of the UAE, with a two-year contract.
The thirty-year-old from Cherbourg en Cotentin is Gianetti and Matxin's big gamble for 2026. This year, in fact, Cosnefroy He raced very little due to knee surgery and then missed the French championships and the Tour de France due to a crash at the Tour of Switzerland.. Benoit will bring with him experience in one-day races, having won the Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec and the Plouay Classic beating Alaphilippe. He looked like the Frenchman of the future for one-day races, especially after taking second place at the 2022 Amstel, beaten in a photo finish by Kwiatkowski, but his path has suffered several setbacks.
The darkest Christmas
The last few months have been uphill. Winter had already been a constant suffering, due to the knee pain, which required surgery in JanuaryHis father said Cosnefroy couldn't pedal for more than a quarter of an hour. At Christmas, he was in terrible pain, until he realized what was wrong and then felt liberated.
«It wasn't a linear period – Cosnefroy said – initially I had many doubts, until we found the cause. The winter was very complicated, especially in December.I was hoping to have a good season, and that's what I was working towards. Suddenly, however, I was no longer able to manage the situation. At the beginning of January I went to see a surgeon in Belgium and he told me that I would need an operation.From that moment on, everything got easier. After the operation, I took 15 days of complete rest, then I went to a rehabilitation center for three weeks."
After returning to action at the Tour de Romandie and after finishing second at the Boucles de l'Aulne, Cosnefroy won the GP of Morbihan in Plumelec (Opening photo). "Honestly," he commented, "I never doubted I'd come back at my best. After the surgery, all the parameters were good and my rehabilitation was good.. It's been a long road."
Passion for Flanders
2024 was probably his best season. He won the Tour de Alpes Maritimes ahead of Albanese. He finished sixth at the Strade Bianche. Victories at the Paris-Camembert and especially at the Brabant ArrowFourth place at the Flèche Wallonne and victory at the GP du Morbihan and the GP du Finistere. Finally the clavicle fracture at the Renewi Tour which forced him to end the season early.
«These places are the roots of our sport – he said after beating Teuns and Wellens at Brabant – I've wanted to discover this world for years, to immerse myself in this atmosphere. Ever since I saw Valentin Madouas finish third in the 2022 Tour of Flanders, I've been itching to give it a try. Flemish races are not like the others: they require a lot of physical energy, but the mental aspect plays a fundamental role. And'it's a stressful aspect and you have to know how to overcome it. For this reason I have prepared myself to make very demanding efforts, pushing myself beyond my limits."
Gianetti's bet
Now we start again with the number one team in the world. In French cycling, the question is whether Cosnefroy will have the space to do his races., but probably in the management of the UAE Emirates could go and occupy the space left free by Alessandro Covi. A winning rider, sent to score points in races where the top riders will not be fieldedWe'll have to ask Mauro Gianetti the reason for this choice. For now, Cosnefroy remains enthusiastic and is about to resume the work interrupted by the fall in Switzerland.
«After talking to the team and analyzing their ambitions – he explained – it became clear that This collaboration could have turned out to be a success and the right decision to makeI can't wait to start this new chapter and compete with my new teammates."
At the season finale he was seen in Italy to catch up on new material. The first appointment with the new team will be the Spanish retreat in DecemberAnd at that point, the new chapter in the bespectacled Frenchman's career will have begun. A gamble for both him and the managers who hired him.
