Ineos Grenadiers sign 16-year-old Spanish talent

Ineos Grenadiers have signed 16-year-old Benjamín Noval, who will ride for the team from 2027 after completing his time at junior level.

The young Spaniard has won 14 times this season, including the GC and youth classifications at both Vuelta Ciclista al Besaya and GP F.W.R Baron, and is the reigning junior Spanish cyclo-cross champion.

Noval, from Astuarias, currently rides for MMR Cycling Academy, and is the son of former pro cyclist Benjamín Noval, who rode for various teams from 2001 to 2013, ending his career at Saxo-Tinkoff.

Ineos will work with the teenager over the next season and a half, before he joins the team full-time in 2027, by which time he will be 18.

The younger Noval said: "Joining Ineos Grenadiers is a dream come true for me. This is one of the best cycling teams in the world and I’m very happy to join its ranks so they can help me develop my qualities to their full extent. I want to thank the team for believing in me, and I hope to pay them back in the near future."

"Benjamín has all the hallmarks of a rider who can develop into something very special," Dr Scott Drawer, head of performance at Ineos Grenadiers, said. "He’s intelligent on the bike and driven off it, and he has already shown a real edge in competitive environments. We’re excited to support his transition to the WorldTour and look forward to helping him fulfil his potential within our performance system."

John Allert, the team's CEO, added: "At the heart of our team is a belief in long-term development and investing in the next generation of talent. Benjamín represents that future - and we're delighted he’s chosen to grow and develop with us.

"The foundations we will put in place for him ahead of 2027 will be designed to support performance but also his growth as an athlete and individual."

Noval is just the latest young talent to join the team, with Ineos signing Michael Leonard aged 18 in 2022, and AJ August at the same age last year. This season, they partnered up with German development team Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank, to whom they loaned Peter Øxenberg and Theodor Storm, both of whom will rejoin the WorldTour squad in 2026.

Young riders have become increasingly common at the highest level, with Paul Seixas riding for Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale this year aged 18, following in the wheel tracks of fellow teenagers Remco Evenepoel, Quinn Simmons, Juan Ayuso and more on the WorldTour in previous seasons.