'We're not all like Remco' - Junior World Champion Lorenzo Finn explains why he's not rushing to join the WorldTour

Dominating the junior road race at the World Championships in Zurich could hardly fail to get tongues wagging about one of the newest kids on the cycling block and how far he could go, but in fact young Italian Lorenzo Finn is in no rush to join the WorldTour and one day try to reach his maximum potential with Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. 

Finn has one more year of high school to complete and is currently set for two years on the German squad's new 'Rookies' development team with a 2027 step-up looking likely. He and team CEO Ralph Denk are hoping he'll become Red Bull's GC star of the future.

The trend in recent years has seen more and more top junior riders skip the under-23 level and jump straight into cycling's top division. Remco Evenepoel is the most notable example after his rapid rise from cycling latecomer to Grand Tour winner, double Olympic champion and multiple World Champion.

2025 will see two 18-year-old 'super talents' join the men's WorldTour, Albert Withen Philipsen (Lidl-Trek), who was the junior World Champion prior to Finn, and Paul Seixas (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), who won the junior time trial at the Worlds in Zurich. Between the three of them, they came out on top of most junior events in the past season but when the day came in September, Finn was the strongest. In tough rainy conditions, Philipsen crashed out late, with Seixas fading earlier under the unrelenting pressure Finn applied with several attacks. 

Despite their different chosen paths to the senior ranks, the Italian is confident in his decision to continue his development at the U23 level for the next two years, admitting honestly that 'We're not all like Remco [Evenepoel]', who was also the junior World Champion back in 2018 when he stunned with a solo move into Innsbruck. 

At the time, Evenepoel enjoyed the second-biggest winning margin ever in the junior road race, with his 1:25 advantage only falling short of Italian Giuseppe Palumbo's 1:40 margin in 1993, when he triumphed with a 1:40 lead. Finn's stunning triumph came with an even larger margin, a whopping 2:05, making it a serious understatement to label him simply as 'one to watch'.

Cyclingnews sat down with the recently turned 18-year-old at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe's December training camp in Mallorca to talk about that day in Zurich, why Finn's opted not to go straight to the WorldTour and how having an Italian mother and English father has aided him in his pursuit to become a pro.

Cyclingnews: You reached your best level yet and became the junior World Champion just three months ago, but how did you first get into cycling?

LF: Well, actually, I got into cycling when I was 12-13. I was playing football and tennis before, then I had a bit of a knee problem and growth problem, so I just went and tried cycling. I enjoyed it and then slowly progressed from there to where I am now. So it's been a good journey.

CN: Was there a cycling background in your family?

LF: No, not really, my dad played football. So it was mainly a football family, no real cyclists.

CN: Can you talk a bit about your upbringing? I understand your dad is English and your mum is Italian, how has that shaped you as a person and a rider?

LF: So I live in Italy. Yes, my dad is from Sheffield and my mum is from Italy, Genoa, where I live. I think it's definitely helped me through my career because I speak quite fluent English, and at Red Bull, knowing English is good in general to travel, to do interviews and communication is key. We all speak English, so I think that's been a massive help for me compared to the guys I see sometimes struggle with it.

CN: And you're still studying at the moment, how has it been combining that with trying to become a professional cyclist?

LF: Yeah, I'm in my last year of high school. It hasn't been easy, to be honest, the Italian school system doesn't really help you that much in that regard. But I'm just trying to get it done this year and then I can fully focus on cycling.

CN: After your first year in the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe setup [on junior team GRENKE- Auto Eder], why was the under-23 team the right step for you?

LF: I think it's just been a natural step in the development, from last year being a junior and then having this development pathway up to the World Tour. I wanted to have two years at under-23 to continue my development because I felt like making the jump straight to WorldTour from the juniors was definitely not the right choice for me. We're not all like Remco. 

Also, there are some amazing under-23 races like the baby Giro and Tour de l'Avenir. At the same time, I can do some races with the [WorldTour] pros, like some minor races, and still get some experience there. 

CN: Did the team make that decision for you, or was that decision to go to the new 'Rookies' development team, instead of stepping up to WorldTour straight out of the juniors led by you?

LF: No, I think it was more like we both agreed on just continuing with this rookies program. I think it made sense from both sides. 

CN: Do you think more juniors now rush that step and miss out on important development they could gain from two years at the U23 level?

LF: Yeah, I definitely think so. As I say, most juniors aren't like Remco, so I see some juniors going straight to WorldTour and ask myself if that's the right choice. But I mainly just try focusing on myself and I think for me, this is right. Maybe for them, it will work.

CN: After a couple of days at training camp here in Mallorca, how has it been being with your teammates and around the WorldTour team at Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe?

LF:  It's definitely been amazing. We're just like part of the team. Also, coming from the juniors, I still felt like we were in the environment, but especially this year, we just feel like part of the WorldTour team, basically, just a different calendar. Even just being at dinner with the WorldTour guys is really cool. It should make the step to WorldTour a lot easier when hopefully, eventually it will come. 

CN: So we should expect to see you at WorldTour level in 2027 if all goes to plan?

LF: Yes, I'll have two years in the under-23 team and then obviously, the ideal plan will be to go WorldTour after that. Hopefully, that's how it goes.

CN: After completing your two years in the juniors, what type of rider would you currently describe yourself as being?

LF: As a junior, I could be described as a GC climber but it's hard to know when you're young. The races are a lot shorter than the pros but I think I'm pretty good in one-day races. I like a hard hilly one-day race on a Liège type of parcours, and I like stage races, you know, as well as climbing days. Hopefully, I'll develop into a climbing GC talent but it might be too early to say.

CN: You mentioned briefly part of your calendar for next year, will the Giro d'Italia Next Gen and Tour de l'Avenir be your main goals?

LF: For sure, the baby Giro especially with it being in Italy. But yeah, they're both amazing races that I will do with the team. There are also some one-day races I'm looking forward to but those two are the big, big targets. 

CN: And the Worlds again, but at under-23 this time?

LF: Yes, if I get selected. As it's in Rwanda, it'll be tough doing the travel and stuff, but it's a long way away, so I'm not thinking about it too much right now. But definitely, it's a goal.

CN: Some national federations have announced they won't be sending juniors or U23 riders due to the costs, do you know for certain if Italy will be?

LF: Yes, for sure they will.

CN: How do you look back on winning the road race at Worlds in Zurich now?

LF: I think it has definitely sunk in now. It's still pretty surreal just going out training with the jersey on. It was just like a surreal day overall,  just one of those days where everything goes right. You need both good legs and good luck and I had both, it was definitely one of the most special days I've ever had in my life. 

With everything that came after too, it's just been a roller coaster of emotions, but I don't live with too much pressure. It was just good that it happened, and also, I think, a result of hard work.