Pinarello-Q36.5 is trying to sign Brazilian climber Henrique Bravo from Soudal Quick-Step Devo Team, according to a report published by WielerFlits on Thursday, September 3.
The Swiss ProTeam have supposedly offered the 20-year-old a much better deal than the one he has with his current team, but Soudal-Quickstep insiders insist Bravo remains under contract with the Belgian outfit until the end of 2028.
The young Brazilian has had several top results in 2026, claiming his first professional victory on the seventh stage of the Tour du Rwanda in February. He went on to win the Tour of Antalya and Oberösterreich Rundfahrt overall, taking a stage in each. He also finished third at the Giro d’Italia U23 behind Lorenzo Finn and Matéo Ramírez before winning the four-day Giro della Valle d’Aosta in July. That win in Italy made him the first Brazilian and only the third South American to win the race.
Since then he has impressed in the Tour de l’Ain 2.1 race before a strong ride to take fifth in the final GC at the prestigious Tour de l’Avenir.
He started his racing career in mountain biking, competing domestically and internationally but moved to road racing in 2024 where he was snapped up by Soudal-Quickstep’s development setup after he won the Vuelta Ribera del Duero overall, including an uphill stage finish at Laguna Negra, a climb often used in La Vuelta.
Soudal faces a stage-racing roster problem
If Soudal-Quickstep were to lose Bravo it would be a third top climber to be lost from their roaster after Remco Evenepoel’s move to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Mikel Landa’s confirmed transfer to Euskaltel-Euskadi. Soudal has been rebuilding around a greater emphasis on the cobbled Classics since Evenepoel’s departure was confirmed in August 2025.
WielerFlits reports that Soudal’s senior roster is already full for 2027. That leaves limited space to promote Bravo or provide a clearer pathway within the WorldTour team, despite the reported contract running for another two seasons.
Whereas, Pinarello-Q36.5 have been flexing their financial muscle for next season with several top signings including a few young up-and-coming stars. Its incoming group includes Andrew August from Netcompany-Ineos, Pavel Bittner from Picnic-PostNL, Mauro Schmid from Jayco-AlUla and Liam O’Brien from Lidl-Trek Future Racing.
Jan Castellon and Sebastian Berwick are joining from Caja Rural-Seguros RGA, with Tom Crabbe arriving from Flanders-Baloise and Niels Driesen from Lotto-Groupe Wanty. Most are young riders with room to develop.
Bravo isn’t confirmed as continuing to 2028 online but insiders to Soudal-Quickstep claim he is. However, with nothing yet official, Pianrello-Q36.5 will be keen to challenge for the Brazilian’s services.
