Since turning professional in 2020, at just twenty-one years old, Andrea Bagioli has shown himself to be a rider capable of riding at the head of the peloton. Soudal-Quick Step saw a talent in him, la Lidl Trek he wanted to invest in it with the idea of making it a precious object of his panorama under constructionThe calling card with which Bagioli presented himself to his new American team, at the end of 2023, was very impressive: third in the Coppa Bernocchi, first in the Gran Piemonte and second in the Giro di Lombardia behind Pogacar.
Last year the empty passage was evident and after a necessary rest he reappeared at the start of the new season with the aim of showing his worth. “true” Bagioli.
New mechanisms
The novelty of 2025 was the departure from Australia with the Santos Tour Down Under to regain his fitness and the right feeling with racing after a season that ended prematurely. The result gave a glimpse of a possible recoveryThe season then continued with some other good placings and the third place at the Indurain GP. But the real shock came at Liège-Bastogne-Liège and thanks to a sixth place that brought Bagioli back to the head of the group in the Classics as well.
His reference in the team is Adriano Baffi, the two were together on Friday in Switzerland in Aargau and today they started the Tour de Suisse. Together with the sporting director of Lidl-Trek we try to understand what the real expectations are around Bagioli.
"He came to us as a young and promising kid," says Baffi, "and found himself in a team with different setups and systems than he was used to. In 2024 he paid the price for the new adventureThis year he has gotten more into the mechanics and has shown he can do it."
What has changed?
I see him more open with us on the team and this allows us to support him where we can, last year it was closed but it's also about building a relationshipHe didn't know us and he came from a totally different reality.
Did it take time to settle in?
It wasn't logical that those of 2024 were his performances, the numbers he recorded and still has are very differentThe only possible answer was that he suffered from the team change.
Now that you've been working on it for over a year, what kind of rider do you think he could be?
In all fairness, I'd say Bettini; he has the same athletic qualities. Clearly, we're talking about two riders with different results. However, Bagioli has good resistance uphill and is quick and these qualities emerge more as the kilometers go by.
Did he need to find trust?
We always wait for a rider like Bagioli, he has the qualities. In today's cycling it is not easy to get the results one should or could haveThere are many things that influence a performance, but in the end, the road puts the value of the athlete first.
What is Bagioli's true value?
He can do more, but that more would mean winning Liège. The step to take is not easy, he trains well and now he is showing good thingsGiven his performance, I think the time will come when he'll be able to show it off. His second place in the final stage of the Tour of Slovenia and his other placings speak volumes. Perhaps that is what can represent its true value It's sixth place this year at Liège.
We must try to win…
I think Bagioli is a rider capable of winning two or three races in a season, and I'm talking about important races too. But he has to take the step, we can support him but then he gets on the bikeIn cycling, there are those who win and those who are good riders, and Bagioli is trying to understand where he fits in.
