Lidl-Trek's Mathias Vacek had been a constant throughout this year's Giro d'Italia so far, and looks set to be a star of the future after playing a key role for race leader Mads Pedersen throughout the Albanian Grande Partenza and the first day on Italian roads.
Vacek, still just 22, leads the best young rider classification four days into the action, with top-tier positioning and lead-outs for Pedersen, alongside a strong stage 2 time trial, leaving him third overall. He shouldn't be too unknown, given his exploits at last year's Vuelta a España – where he finished second twice on stages 1 and 7 on Grand Tour debut – but his versatility has put him well into the focus of the cycling world.
He's a calm and quiet individual in conversation, completely contrasting with his power and intensity on the bike, a power that his teammates say he doesn't even know the limit of, with the Czech having more than found his place as a jack-of-all-trades domestique with Lidl-Trek for the moment.
"He's a super good rider. I don't think he realises how hard he can ride a bike, it amazes me every day," said Thibau Nys to Cyclingnews when asked about his Czech teammate back in January.
"I always have the feeling that he can just get out of bed and push 500 watts for ages, this is the type of rider he is. He is also always there to help the team, and you can trust him."
The characteristics Nys spoke of have been on show throughout the 2025 Giro, with huge 1200-watt power being recorded in his lead-outs, and a selfless role being played out so perfectly by Vacek, that Pedersen vowed after his second stage win to help pay him back with a maiden GT stage win.
"Vacek is absolutely amazing. This kid here has such a big future ahead of him, and he's shown again and again what he is able to do," said Pedersen after winning stage 3.
"But we also have to watch out that we're not putting too much on this guy, because he can win a lot of bike races too.
"I tell you guys I will do absolutely everything possible to make him have a stage win in this race, because he deserves it as well. He's a machine, and I'm so proud of being able to have this type of guy riding with me because he makes a big difference."
A shock WorldTour win, cross-country skiing and finding his feet at Lidl-Trek
The Czech rider had his WorldTour breakthrough three years ago at the UAE Tour, where he won a sprint stage from the break while racing for the former Gazprom-RusVelo team, who were formally suspended following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Following this, he found his way into cycling's top division in August of the same year and has only gone on to refine his skills, learning from the likes of Pedersen, a former world champion and one of the peloton's top riders, along the way.
"I'm really learning from him now, so the plan is to be as good as him in the Classics and still come to the Grand Tours and win stages like him," Vacek told Cyclingnews and Daniel Benson's Substack before stage 4 in Alberobello.
"I would see myself a little bit like him, but there's still a long way to go. For now, everything is on the right track, and I'm happy with how it is.
"[Pedersen is] a real leader, and the biggest things I've learned from him are how to handle situations, how to handle a team, how to be as calm as possible, and focus full gas on the performance and races."
Vacek is a remarkably different rider from who he was when he won that UAE stage in 2022, with Lidl-Trek aiding his development from a former dual-sport talent in cross-country skiing and cycling to one of the hottest prospects in the latter.
"I was doing both when I was younger but in the end, if you want to be the best in sports, then you have to focus on one thing, and cycling was the way to go," said Vacek of his former high-level racing days on the snow, making the full switch to cycling in 2020 after becoming the junior European time trial champion.
"After the UAE win, it was quite a big development for me, because when I entered the pro peloton, the WorldTour, it was a big change for me, and I was struggling with how to get into it and manage myself or prepare for races.
"But now with Lidl-Trek I'm really supported and have what I want. I think we're really on the right track for the future, which is something I'm looking forward to."
That immediate future will take the form of trying to win a first Grand Tour stage at the Giro, with the loyal help of Pedersen and others, and could come on the punchy final in Matera on stage 5, or the gravel day into Siena on stage 9.
"I'm really happy with the performance I have now, and everything is going really, really well so far. I'm feeling good, so probably I will also have a chance in the next few days to go for a stage," said the Czech rider on Tuesday.
"We will see how it goes, what the plan will be, but for sure, also with this team, we can go with a reduced bunch, put guys under pressure and win from a small group."
Having had what was meant to be a great Classics season derailed by sickness, Vacek was well away from the potential he showed at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad as he tried to help Pedersen in the cobbled campaign, however, he was fully refreshed ahead of the Giro and looking for that maiden success in a three-weeker.
"I recovered at home from the Classics, and I feel quite ready. Of course, the Classics season was a bit unlucky with the sickness and crashes I had, but this belongs to cycling," Vacek told Cyclingnews on the eve of the race in Tirana.
"Now I'm here, standing again in really good shape. We'll see what the Giro will bring, but it should be a good Giro for me.
"I will give it all in the TTs, which I'm aiming for, so that's where I want to take at least a second place like in the Vuelta last year," he laughed. "It will be hard to win, but I will try. A stage win, of course, would be phenomenal."
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