{"id":228914,"date":"2025-10-27T21:53:12","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T21:53:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/228914\/"},"modified":"2025-10-27T21:53:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T21:53:12","slug":"zak-dempster-on-stepping-up-at-red-bull-bora-hansgrohe-%f0%9f%87%a6%f0%9f%87%ba-%f0%9f%87%a9%f0%9f%87%aa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/228914\/","title":{"rendered":"Zak Dempster on stepping up at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe \ud83c\udde6\ud83c\uddfa \ud83c\udde9\ud83c\uddea"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe at the Tour de France in 2025. Photo courtesy of A.S.O.\/Billy Ceusters.<\/p>\n

Hi Everyone, <\/p>\n

I took Friday and the weekend off from Substack. It\u2019s been a long season, and the batteries need a bit of recharging, but that time away has been really helpful in giving me space to think about the off-season and next year. <\/p>\n

It goes without saying that the Substack returns in 2026 \ud83c\udf89, and I\u2019m thinking about what improvements and enhancements can be made to the current format and content. That process will take a few more weeks, but what I can guarantee is that I\u2019m committed to building on what we have right now, so we\u2019ll be at more races next season, provide deeper, more analytical coverage, and expand the remit into new areas. <\/p>\n

This week, we\u2019ve got plenty of content too, including interviews with Matt White, Bas Tietema, and Lorenzo Finn\u2019s father, on parenting a world champion, as well as exclusives on how development teams recruit riders, and much more. <\/p>\n

I know that the season is coming to an end, but it\u2019s also a chance to reflect on the campaign and start planning for 2026. Over the next week or so, I\u2019ll share a provisional plan for the races I hope to attend, but we\u2019re beginning this week\u2019s coverage with an exclusive interview with Zak Dempster, the new Chief of Sports at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. <\/p>\n

We discuss leadership for Grand Tours, how to bring out the best in a team that underperformed in 2025, how Remco Evenepoel, Florian Lipowitz, and Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d can collaborate and take on UAE and Visma, sprinting plans, and much more.<\/p>\n

Thanks
Daniel \ud83e\udef6<\/p>\n

Follow me on: Twitter<\/a> \ud83d\udfe2 \u2014 Instagram<\/a> \ud83d\udd34 \u2014 Bluesky<\/a> \ud83d\udd35<\/p>\n

When the changes at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe occurred, they were swift and decisive, with Rolf Aldag and two sports directors removed from their positions shortly after the Tour de France ended. The team’s ruthless approach saw Aldag, Enrico Gasparotto, and Heinrich Haussler all shown the door as team boss Ralph Denk implemented several key changes, including the appointment of Zak Dempster on October 1.<\/p>\n

The Australian had been a leading sports director at Ineos Grenadiers, but when his former boss, Denk, offered him a key managerial role on a team with one of the biggest budgets and the best rosters in men\u2019s cycling, Dempster began to draft his Ineos resignation.<\/p>\n

In the last few weeks, Dempster has immersed himself in the huge task of improving the squad he once rode for. The ambitions at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe are enormous, with Tour de France glory their ultimate aim. Although the team has certainly strengthened in the transfer market with the acquisition of Remco Evenepoel from Soudal Quick-Step, the gap between the German team and the very best squads in the world remains vast. Denk has already shown that patience only stretches so far, but after so many changes in the last few months, Dempster is confident he can at least put the team on the right path.<\/p>\n

We caught up with him at the conclusion of the team\u2019s first off-season camp to talk about how the team can be improved, how Dempster can get Florian Lipowitz, Remco Evenepoel and Primo\u017e Rogli\u010d on the same page when it comes to Grand Tour ambitions, and how several underperforming stars can resurrect their careers after down years or slow starts to their Red Bull tenures. We talk about shared leadership, Dempster\u2019s vision, closing the gap to Tadej Poga\u010dar, and much more.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe camp has been busy. I\u2019ve done a lot of listening, and this camp was the finalisation of reflecting for the whole team, so it was one of those things that I wanted to get in place immediately. I wanted to speak to people and hear from them about where the team was at and where it needed to go. Then we got that onto paper and how all the small-picture things can fit into our big picture. It was a useful camp. I spent two days in a room talking to every single rider, which was really useful. Now it\u2019s a time for a lot of people to go off and rest, but for me to put context in and work with the team to build the plan,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n