Dylan Groenewegen joins Unibet Tietema Rockets on a two year deal
Dylan Groenewegen has officially signed with Unibet Tietema Rockets, in what marks the most high-profile transfer in the team’s short history. The move was announced Tuesday morning through a documentary-style video on the team’s YouTube channel, filmed in secret over the past weeks.
The 32-year-old Dutch sprinter leaves Jayco-AlUla after four seasons, during which he added Tour de France stage wins to his palmarès, as well as victories at the UAE Tour, Tour of Slovenia and Tour de Hongrie. Rather than choosing another established WorldTour outfit, Groenewegen opted for a team still on the rise - but with a plan he believes in.
“Sometimes it’s good to have a change,” Groenewegen said in the video. “This winter, I spoke with Josse Wester [one of the team founders], and these guys are more serious than I thought. It’s a real cycling team, they want to grow and they have a really good plan. And I believe in the plan. That’s I think the most important.”
That belief became the foundation for the deal. In one of their early meetings, Groenewegen made his intentions unmistakably clear: “I want to win your first Tour de France stage,” he said. “Imagine, if we are riding the Tour de France... and we win that 21st stage on the Champs-Élysées... we will never experience that feeling again.”
The signing, which is for the 2026 and 27 seasons, represents a major leap forward for Unibet Tietema Rockets, both in visibility and sporting ambition. Groenewegen won’t be making the move alone - his long-time lead-out man Elmar Reinders is also joining the team from Jayco-AlUla, giving the Rockets a sprint train capable of challenging at the highest level.
For team founder Bas Tietema, the signing marks a defining moment in the team’s journey. “Dylan didn’t choose us because we’re the biggest team,” he said. “He chose us because he saw something different.” That belief, Tietema explained, captures what the project stands for - and why it keeps moving forward. “It’s a big step,” he added. “A step closer to the biggest dream we have.”
What started just a few years ago as a YouTube experiment has now become one of the sport’s most talked-about development stories. With Groenewegen on board, the team isn’t just dreaming of participating at the Tour de France - they’re actively planning how to win in it.
