Over a decade has passed since Ineos Grenadiers last sent a sprinter to the Tour de France. The year was 2012. The rider? A 27-year-old Mark Cavendish, racing in the world champion’s jersey for the then-called Team Sky.
Cavendish won three stages that edition, including the closing one on Paris’s Champs-Élysées. The following year, he signed for Omega Pharma - Quick-Step, Team Sky nailed down its focus to GC domination, and the team never brought a sprinter to the Tour again.
That could all change this July. A late recruit to Ineos Grenadiers’ roster this season, Caleb Ewan has begun his campaign with intent. Victory on debut at Coppi e Bartali was followed on Tuesday by a first WorldTour win in three years at Itzulia Basque Country. Now, the 30-year-old says, his big ambition is to make the Tour squad, following in Cavendish’s footsteps.
“In an ideal world, if all goes well, I can go to the Tour de France. That’s my goal,” Ewan told Cycling Weekly last week at the launch of SunGod’s London store.
“I don’t know exactly what their plan is, and I guess it depends on how everyone’s going in the team, what kind of direction they want to go for when it comes to that.”
From 2012 to 2019, the British WorldTour squad ruled over the Tour, winning seven out of eight editions through Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas and Egan Bernal.
That stranglehold has slipped in recent years, however. Ineos Grenadiers' highest-placed finisher in 2024 was Carlos Rodríguez in seventh. Stage wins have also proved hard to come by, with the team's riders collecting four over the last five years.
“In an ideal world for [the team] as well, I will also get to a really good level that they think I can compete for wins at the Tour,” said Ewan, already a five-time stage winner.
“I think there are maybe seven or eight opportunities in the Tour for a sprinter. That’s seven or eight opportunities, if I can be going good, that the team has extra. I think they’re really on board with that as well, and I think they’ll definitely try to help me try to get to that point.”
After a winless edition in 2024, could a rejuvenated Ewan bring the spark Ineos Grenadiers need?
The Australian’s calendar will see him race the Tour de Romandie, Four Days of Dunkerque, Tour of Norway, and the Baloise Belgium Tour before selection for the Grand Tour is made. If his form continues, his claim for a spot will be compelling.
“All I can do is try to win as much as possible and prove that I deserve to be there,” Ewan said.
Thirteen years on from the last, a winning sprinter would be a welcome addition for the team.
