Mads Pedersen of Lidl–Trek had a solid spring, but he missed out on the Monument win he was chasing. A third at Paris–Roubaix, a second at the Ronde van Vlaanderen, and a good showing at E3 Saxo Classic closed out a strong campaign — but could it have been better?

Granted, he did take a big solo win at Gent–Wevelgem — despite some of his teammates criticizing him for it. In 2024, he also won that race — beating none other than Mathieu van der Poel. This year, he decided to switch it up, it seems. In 2025, He ended up soloing 50km for the dub.

Leadership questions inside Lidl–Trek

Former Danish pro Brian Holm said it doesn’t seem like his Lidl–Trek team has his back.

“Why can’t Lidl–Trek just say that Mads Pedersen is the team leader?” he said on the “Café Eddy” podcast.  During the Classics, the team said they’d ride for Pedersen as well as Jonathan Milan and Jasper Stuyven. “They say, ‘We’re riding with three leaders.’ I find that very, very strange.”

Tour snub adds to the frustration

This is Pedersen’s final year under contract, and he wasn’t listed in the initial Tour de France roster. Granted, that may change given his strong results, but it must certainly feel strange for the former world champion to be passed over.

Roubaix heartbreak

Pedersen looked strong at Roubaix until a puncture took him out of contention. After the race, he was clearly frustrated, feeling he had the form to take on van der Poel.

“It’s a bitter pill to swallow. We don’t know how it would have turned out. It’s just a shame that a puncture had to decide it. But that’s how it goes sometimes — you have to take the bitter with the sweet. Still, it’s more proof that it’s been a more than successful Classics season. I just really hoped I could finish it off with a win. But it wasn’t to be this year,” he said to Danish outlet TV2.

He did say that finishing third in a Monument is a good result. “I’m happy with that. But I’ve done that now. It would’ve been great to actually ride for the win. Like I said, though, there’s not much we can do about it,” he said.

Is it time for Pedersen to move on?

Holm thinks that between the leadership-sharing notion, as well as being left off the Tour team, it’s a sign for him to bounce.

“Now, if I were his agent, I would tell him that I think it’s time to switch teams. He absolutely belongs in the Tour de France, for sure. And I don’t know the full story, but I am quite sure he cannot be happy about it.”

At the 2024 edition, Pedersen was forced to abandon before Stage 8 after a bad crash a few days earlier. Before his DNS, he had a fourth and a seventh. It’s clear that Milan has big things ahead of him — he’s quickly becoming one of the great sprinters in the peloton — but Pedersen’s track record deserves more respect, according to Holm.

Mørkøv agrees: Pedersen deserves more

It’s not just the former T-Mobile rider saying it — former leadout man extraordinaire and track star, now national team coach, Michael Mørkøv, agrees.

“It’s a mystery at this point what’s going on there. With the performances he’s delivered and the way he’s been riding, I can’t see how he isn’t the sole leader of that team. But it seems like the team they have now, and maybe the directeurs sportifs’ approach, could be too non-confrontational and diplomatic.”

What’s next?

Pedersen has been with the team for eight years and has racked up some big wins — including the world road championships in 2019, two Tour de France stages and three at the Vuelta. He’s 29 now, but he definitely has a few more years left where he can take some other big wins.

The only question now is whether he’ll be chasing those wins in Lidl–Trek colours — or somewhere new.