Unibet Rose Rockets - Riders
Unibet Rose Rockets, is a Dutch UCI ProTeam managed by Bas Tietema. The team was launched in 2023 with the goal of combining performance, fan engagement and accessible storytelling around cycling. Backed by title sponsors Unibet and Rose, the team races primarily in Europe and has it's key riders with Lukas Kubis, Dylan Groenewegen and Wout Poels.
Riders
| Name | Country | Date of birth |
|---|---|---|
| Wout Poels | Netherlands | 01.10.1987 |
| Dylan Groenewegen | Netherlands | 21.06.1993 |
| Elmar Reinders | Netherlands | 14.03.1992 |
| Odd Christian Eiking | Norway | 28.12.1994 |
| Clément Venturini | France | 16.10.1993 |
| Hartthijs de Vries | Netherlands | 11.07.1996 |
| Niklas Larsen | Denmark | 22.03.1997 |
| Adam Toupalik | Czech Republic | 09.05.1996 |
| Abram Stockman | Belgium | 31.07.1996 |
| Lander Loockx | Belgium | 25.04.1997 |
| Jelle Johannink | Netherlands | 22.10.1996 |
| Victor Lafay | France | 17.01.1996 |
| Rory Townsend | Ireland | 30.06.1995 |
| Joren Bloem | Netherlands | 21.12.1999 |
| Jannis Peter | Germany | 30.10.2000 |
| Lukas Kubis | Slovakia | 31.01.2000 |
| Martijn Rasenberg | Netherlands | 09.11.2001 |
| Owen Geleijn | Netherlands | 14.01.2001 |
| Tomas Kopecky | Czech Republic | 08.04.2000 |
| Adrien Maire | France | 17.11.2000 |
| Sergio Meris | Italy | 10.03.2001 |
| Wessel Mouris | Netherlands | 30.12.2002 |
| Killian Verschuren | France | 20.10.2002 |
| Karsten Feldmann | Norway | 28.03.2003 |
| Eivind Broholt Fougner | Norway | 02.03.2003 |
| Matyas Kopecky | Czech Republic | 19.01.2003 |
| Tobias Müller | Germany | 31.03.2004 |
| Ronan Augé | France | 29.04.2004 |
| Colin Savioz | France | 11.06.2004 |
| Cedrik Bakke Christophersen | Norway | 11.12.2001 |
Full official team name and common short name
Unibet–Rose Rockets is the registered name; most media and fans use Rose Rockets or The Rockets. Their UCI identifier is URR.
Team category and status
UCI ProTeam in 2026, targeting WorldTour wildcards for the spring classics and at least one Grand Tour, with an eye on WorldTeam status in the medium term.
Primary disciplines
Men’s elite road racing with a sprint-and-classics core, plus breakaway stage hunting, fast TTs and selective GC aims on climbing‑lite routes.
Country of registration and base location
Unibet Rose Rockets is French registered, with the service course based in the Dutch province of Overijssel and equipment plus engineering support linked to ROSE Bikes’ base in Bocholt, Germany.
Founding year and origin story
Born from the Tour de Tietema project (the Dutch content‑to‑competition venture) that launched a UCI Continental squad in 2023 as TDT–Unibet. The structure grew through 2024–2025, rebranding to Unibet–Rose Rockets and stepping up to ProTeam level for 2026, pairing Unibet’s continued title backing with ROSE’s elevation to co‑title status.
Current title sponsor and key partners
Title partners are Unibet and ROSE Bikes, and the team races on ROSE aero and climber platforms plus a time trial setup that uses rebranded Ridley frames.
Previous team names and sponsor history
It started as Tour de Tietema, evolved into TDT–Unibet as a Continental and ProTeam team from 2023 to 2025, and became Unibet Rose Rockets in 2026.
Key achievements (structure lineage)
From the TDT era, they banked Continental and ProSeries wins, stacked up steady top tens through the cobbled spring, and hit national championship podiums that proved the content to pro pathway could deliver real results.
For 2026, the targets step up: a first WorldTour one day win, a Grand Tour stage from a wildcard invite, and a top five finish in the classics points standings.
Leadership and key staff
Founder Bas Tietema leads the team’s general management, with a performance department built around classics know how and sprinting. To sharpen that sprint focus, they have brought in Marcel Kittel as a headline addition.
Key riders
This is a sprint first squad with real classics grit. Dylan Groenewegen is the closer, backed by a hard drilled lead out built to own the final three kilometres: Elmar Reinders, Rory Townsend, Niklas Larsen, the Kopecký brothers, Lukáš Kubiš, Joren Bloem and Owen Geleijn.
When the road tilts or the race breaks late, Victor Lafay and Odd Christian Eiking are the ones to light it up and hang on. For the rough northern days, Clément Venturini, Adam Ťoupalík and Lander Loockx bring that cyclocross sharpness that turns chaos into opportunity.
Wout Poels anchors the mountain side and adds calm decision making, with Adrien Maire, Abram Stockman and Jelle Johannink alongside him. Hartthijs de Vries, Sergio Meris and Martijn Rasenberg supply the time trial and tempo power when the race needs controlling.
And then there is the next wave: Ronan Augé, Cedrik Bakke Christophersen, Karsten Larsen Feldmann, Eivind Broholt Fougner, Wessel Mouris, Tobias Müller, Jannis Peter, Colin Savioz and Killian Verschuren, riding for chances, learning quickly, and building the future.