Heinrich Haussler is a Sports Director at Decathlon). We chat as the team prepares for the 2026 Giro d’Italia starting in Bulgaria. Haussler dives into the logistical challenges of the early Bulgarian stages and the transfer to Italy, the role of a DS handling logistics, hotels, vehicles, and performance, plus how the team has stayed injury-free heading into the Grand Tour. 

He breaks down Decathlon’s impressive 2026 classics campaign, the rapid rise of Tobias “Toby” Lund Andresen, the incredible maturity and potential of 19-year-old sensation Paul Seixas (already turning heads with podiums and massive watts), Felix Gall’s ambitions, and building a strong team culture with Luke Rowe and others. 

Topics include:

• Evolution of cobbled classics (nutrition, tubeless tyres, training, and why races are faster and harder)

• Creating a “Cervelo Test Team” style selfless atmosphere

• Differences between Red Bull and Decathlon environments

• Australian cycling

• Haussler’s hot takes on riders to watch, his favourite races, and bold Giro predictions for Toby and Felix

Ed Langdon join Max and Alex to review the first 3 stages of the Giro.

Zak Dempster is the Chief of Sports at Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe.

He raced at the WorldTour level for over a decade before transitioning into team management, rising quickly through roles at Israel Cycling Academy and INEOS Grenadiers to now oversee all sporting and performance operations for Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe.

Giro starts Friday.

Plappy's back after a top five at the Tour de Romandie, and we're getting into all of it. The watts, the motorbike chaos, Lipo refusing to ride with Pog, and exactly where Plappy lost time in the prologue - spoiler, it's the corners.

Then we preview the Giro. Vingegaard goes in as the overwhelming favourite for a race he's never done. The GC field's already missing Almeida and Carapaz. The sprint battle is stacked. And the Pillar Performance Top 5 Giro moments of the last decade. Tommy D taking a roadside squat in the pink jersey. Froome attacking from 80k out. Yates winning it back on the exact climb that broke him. It's all in there.

Patrick Eddy winning in the Australian jersey in Europe, Ineos's new money, and the teams that win table updated.

We get technical with Koen de Kort, Head of Innovation and Tech at Lidl-Trek. After 17 years racing at the highest level - 43 classics, 18 Grand Tours - Koen now sits on the other side of the sport, driving the technology that gives WorldTour riders their edge. We dig into his current projects, where the biggest performance gains are being found right now, how cycling tech has evolved from his days in the peloton, and what the future of race equipment, skin suits, aerodynamics and bikes looks like.

Matt Keenan joins Max Gawn and Alex Clements to break down the 2026 Liège-Bastogne-Liège, one of the biggest Ardennes Classics.

The crew review Tadej Pogačar’s dominant performance, discuss rising star Paul Seixas, and debate their Top 5 sprinters of the decade.

Kell O’Brien joins the social club to talk through a massive spring.

We chat about his classics block with Jayco-AlUla’s - Roubaix in particular, track - his Olympic campaigns and what's next, working for the different riders and much more.

Plappy joins the social club to check in after his altitude camp, review Amstel Gold, and preview the week ahead.