Fred Wright will bring his trademark attacking style to Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team from 2026 after signing a three-year deal, ending a six-year stint with Bahrain-Victorious. The move gives the South Londoner a fresh environment as he looks to convert his consistency in the cobbled Classics into long-awaited victories.
At 26, Wright is already a familiar name in the northern monuments, with top-10 finishes in Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders and Milan-Sanremo. He has shown the ability to animate Grand Tours too, coming close to stage wins at both the Tour de France and Vuelta a España. His sole professional win so far remains the British national road championships in 2023, but it is the manner of his racing – aggressive, opportunistic, and often from the front – that has earned him recognition across the peloton.
Looking back on his time at Bahrain-Victorious, Wright acknowledged the team’s role in shaping his career, while also underlining his need for change. “I have been part of this team for my entire career so far and without discrediting them and all the opportunities I had here, it’s time for a new environment after six years. Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team feels like a good fit for me. I have known Tom [Pidcock] and Mark [Donovan] for a while and it feels the group they are building for the future is familiar already.”
Wright’s path to the Classics began in South London at Herne Hill Velodrome with VC Londres. His first taste of Flanders came at just 13, riding the sportive before watching Tom Boonen power away on the Oude Kwaremont. At that stage, a pro road career was far from certain, with Wright focused on the team pursuit and Olympic dreams. It wasn’t until 2019, with stage wins at both the U23 Giro d’Italia and Tour de l’Avenir, that he fully embraced the road, showing a flair for long-range attacks and breakaways.
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That style has become his signature. Though his palmarès is modest, Wright remains one of the peloton’s most watchable riders, a reputation he hopes to build on with Q36.5. “There have been more moments and memories I cherish that didn’t result in wins. I do want to win again, naturally, and feel like a new environment with a fresh focus, new ideas and new people will help me achieve that goal. There are opportunities for me in many races and after having done more or less the same race schedule for years, I am looking forward to discover new races too.”
He was also impressed by the identity and organisation of his new team. “Everything they now already have is quite premium: the look and feel online and offline, the staff, the clothing of course. You wear the kit everyday so knowing the people behind it, see their passion and what they stand for is inspirational.”
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Q36.5 General Manager Doug Ryder sees Wright as a rider ready to take the next step. “Fred is an intelligent rider. He reads the races well and is very versatile. He has already achieved top tens in Monuments like Milan-Sanremo, Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, and adding a focused classics block to his season will be a big objective for us together. He was close to wins in the Tour de France and Vuelta a España already, and I feel we can offer him the final step to win again. His engine is big and his attacking style is always great to watch. He turned pro young and still is only 26, so I am really looking forward to seeing what we can achieve together in the next three years.”
For Wright, the move feels like a natural progression. Still only in his mid-20s, he has the engine and experience to shape races at the highest level. With a team structured around giving him greater Classics opportunities, the next phase of his career could finally deliver the wins that his racing style has long promised.