'Good to see them race in our colours finally' - Ineos reflects on Onley and Vauquelin's debuts at Volta ao Algarve

Both riders finished safely in the pack on the opening stage in Tavira, with Vauquelin in 24th and Onley not too far behind in 33rd. 

The stage was always going to be one for the sprinters, with Paul Magnier ultimately taking Soudal Quick-Step's first victory of the season. For Ineos, the goal was simply to stay out of danger.

“It’s good to see them racing in our colours finally, and they were all together in the final there,” Stannard told Domestique.

Many eyes will be on the duo tomorrow ahead of stage 2’s summit finish to Alto da Fóia. With 3rd place finisher from last year’s GC, Laurens De Plus, as well as two-time Tour de France stage winner Thymen Arensman in their ranks, the British team have plenty of options to explore. 

“We’re feeling good. We’re positive for the stage, and I think you know, it’s the first probably proper test for them all riding together in that GC kind of role as well,” said Stannard. “So I’m sure there’ll be some learnings from that and sort of about improving and moving forward.”

Stannard also discussed the dynamic of having multiple riders capable of a strong GC result, and acknowledged that it’s a much better scenario trying to manage all of those ambitions, compared to not having a GC presence.

“It’s a really good dynamic to have, you know, considering where we've been in the last few years, so it’s positive. I would rather deal with that than not having it,” said Stannard.

Onley also reflected after the finish about the first important day for the GC contenders on Thursday. 

“It’s to try and win, and whoever has the strongest legs wins, I guess,” he said to Daniel Benson's Cycling Substack when asked about his objectives for stage 2. 

“Actually, there’s myself, Kevin and Thymen who are all in good shape, and it’s a climb that you definitely need numbers for with the bits of steep sections and then the flatter sections. It can become quite tactical,” he said.

In his only previous appearance at the race back in 2023, Onley finished 12th overall racing for the then dsm-firmenich team. Though the climb to Alto da Fóia in 2026 will be a different test to what Onley and co faced in 2023, and in the more recent editions.