Two leading British junior teams to merge for 2026 season
Two of Britain’s most successful junior cycling teams have announced they will merge in 2026 to create a unified junior squad, in a bid to provide greater opportunities and elevate performance for young British and Irish riders.
Two of Britain’s most successful junior cycling teams have announced they will merge in 2026 to create a unified junior squad, in a bid to provide greater opportunities and elevate performance for young British and Irish riders. Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco and CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS (CAMS FH MAS) will join forces next season, combining their resources and expertise to better support aspiring professionals. The new mixed-gender team is expected to field up to 24 riders (both male and female juniors), offering a more structured pathway towards the elite ranks.
Team principals Ian Mansel-Thomas (founder of Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco) and Giles Pidcock (who runs CAMS FH MAS) say the merger is driven by a shared mission to help young cyclists build careers in the sport. “The junior scene at international level, at least on the men’s side, is increasingly being dominated by teams that are part of WorldTour setups – the likes of Grenke (Auto Eder, affiliated with Bora–Hansgrohe), AG2R, Soudal-QuickStep, Jegg-Skil-DJR (Visma Lease a Bike), and Cannibal B Victorious (Bahrain Victorious),” Mansel-Thomas explained. “Our new mixed team for British and Irish riders will be able to compete alongside those teams at the top of junior cycling.” Pidcock echoed the sentiment that combining forces will help the British outfits keep pace: “We are proud of what we’ve achieved so far, but the sport is moving on at pace. Pooling our resources with Ian’s team will create economies of scale, enabling us to invest more into the athletes we support so we can continue to race at the front.”
Details of the merger – including the new team name and sponsorship structure – have yet to be finalised. However, it is expected that the current lead sponsors and partners of both squads will be retained in some form, creating a larger budget and support network to fund a full international racing calendar. Both existing teams already race extensively across the UK and Europe; by merging, they aim to solidify their presence in top junior events and strengthen ties with professional development programmes. (Notably, Tofauti Everyone Active is the only UK-based junior team with formal links to a WorldTour outfit, through a collaboration with Team dsm-firmenich’s men’s and women’s teams. The unified team plans to deepen such WorldTour connections going forward.)
Leon Atkins (Fensham Howes-MAS Design). Image: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS: small Team, big results
CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS was founded in 2019 and has quickly become one of the UK’s premier junior development teams. Operated independently of any WorldTour feeder programme, the team is entirely volunteer-run – yet it has punched above its weight on both the domestic and international stage. Under the guidance of team manager Giles Pidcock – the father of Olympic champion Tom Pidcock – the squad has built a reputation for nurturing riders from youth racing into the professional ranks. Approximately 70 percent of its alumni have gone on to earn contracts with pro teams or top under-23 development programmes, a remarkable success rate. Graduates include the likes of Sam Watson (now riding for Ineos Grenadiers in the WorldTour), Bob Donaldson (Team Jayco-AlUla), and Max Poole (who progressed to Team Picnic-PostNL’s WorldTour squad).
On the road, the CAMS FH MAS team has racked up an impressive palmarès over the past few seasons. Their riders have claimed victory in prestigious junior races such as Liège–Bastogne–Liège Juniors, Danilith Nokere Koerse Juniors, and the Junior Tour of Wales, among others. These results highlight the squad’s ability to compete with – and often beat – the development teams of far better-funded WorldTour outfits.
Despite its success, CAMS FH MAS has remained a relatively small operation – typically fielding only six junior men each season. By teaming up with Tofauti, the programme will gain additional riders, a female squad, and greater resources, helping it to sustain its high level. The merger should also alleviate some challenges of running an independent team, like securing funding for international travel and equipment. Pidcock noted that combining the staff and sponsors of the two teams will create efficiencies that allow more investment directly into the riders. In practical terms, a unified budget could mean more racing opportunities in Europe and better support (coaching, mechanics, etc.) at races – all crucial for juniors aiming to catch the eye of professional scouts.
Picture by Olly Hassell/SWpix.com – 13/04/2025 – Cycling – Lloyds Women’s National Road Series – Community Traffic Management East Cleveland Classic – Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Yorkshire, England – Abigail Miller (Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco)
Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco: a different approach to development
Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco was launched in 2020 by Ian Mansel-Thomas with an emphasis on doing things “differently.” In fact, Tofauti means “different” in Swahili – a nod to the team’s partnership with the Tofauti Foundation, a charity founded by Olympic gold-medallist Crista Cullen. From the outset, Mansel-Thomas aimed to offer a development programme with a strong support network on and off the bike for riders, including mentorship and educational guidance alongside racing. The team also made a point to recruit both male and female juniors – one of the first British teams to run parallel junior squads for boys and girls, each with equal standing. “We created a new kind of junior team in 2020, one that offers a strong support network… and despite not being able to race much in our first year (due to the pandemic), we’ve stuck to that ethos,” Mansel-Thomas said of the team’s founding vision.
In just a few seasons, Tofauti Everyone Active (as it was known until the recent addition of co-sponsor Majaco) has swiftly carved out a niche as a proving ground for future stars. The team’s signature bright-green kit has become a regular sight at top junior races from British roads to the cobbled classics of Flanders. And the results have followed: Tofauti’s riders have stamped their authority on major junior events, particularly on the women’s side. In an extraordinary run, the team has won the junior women’s Gent–Wevelgem for three consecutive editions – including a 1-2 finish in 2024 (with riders Amelia Cebak and Rebecca Gardiner taking first and second). They also notched victory in the Junior Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2023, courtesy of then-Team Tofauti rider Tomos Pattinson. Tofauti was notably the first – and so far, only – UK junior team to forge an official development partnership with a WorldTour outfit: it works closely with Team Picnic-PostNL, giving Tofauti riders a direct link to a top-tier professional structure.
The effectiveness of Tofauti’s programme is evident in the trajectory of its alumni. The team has helped launch several riders into professional or elite development teams. For instance, Tomos Pattinson’s win at Liège juniors propelled him to a spot with the Jumbo-Visma development squad. Another graduate, Oliver Peace, now races for the Development Team DSM-firmenich PostNL. On the women’s side, Izzy Sharp made headlines by winning Gent–Wevelgem Juniors 2023 in Tofauti colours – an achievement that earned her a contract with Trek’s Lidl-Trek WorldTour team. And just this past autumn, 18-year-old Carys Lloyd signed a three-year deal with Movistar, becoming the first rider to step directly from Tofauti’s junior ranks into a Women’s WorldTour pro team. As Mansel-Thomas proudly noted, “Her move to Movistar is a landmark achievement that speaks to the quality of our development ethos.”
Max Hinds (Fensham Howes-MAS Design) Image: Olly Hassell/SWpix.com
A new chapter: joining forces for 2026
The creation of a single, mixed-gender “super-team” promises obvious benefits: pooling staff, vehicles and sponsor funds should give Britain’s top juniors deeper coaching, steadier race support and more chances to test themselves on the hard-edged European circuit that now defines modern talent ID. A clearer, well-signposted pathway to the WorldTour could also sharpen scouts’ focus on British talent and offer riders a more predictable progression from national series to pro contract. Yet consolidation carries risks. Concentrating the country’s best 17- and 18-year-olds in one jersey may thin the talent across other domestic junior squads, potentially weakening start-lists at Junior National Series races and making it harder for smaller outfits to secure backers. In short, the merger could raise the ceiling for Britain’s brightest prospects, but only if the base of the pyramid remains strong enough to keep supplying them.
Both Pidcock and Mansel-Thomas stress that the heart of the project remains the same – “to help young people make careers in cycling” – but now with a stronger platform. By sharing knowledge, staff, and sponsor support, the new team aims to give riders access to more high-level racing and a clearer pathway upward. Riders will have opportunities to test themselves regularly against the world’s top juniors, from the windswept cobbles of spring classics to mountainous stage races, all while wearing a British team jersey.
The official team name and sponsors for 2026 are still to be confirmed. The coming months will likely bring announcements on the new roster, leadership structure, and calendar. In the meantime, both existing teams continue with their 2025 campaigns separately, but with a shared vision on the horizon.
Two of Britain’s most successful junior cycling teams have announced they will merge in 2026 to create a unified junior squad, in a bid to provide greater opportunities and elevate performance for young British and Irish riders. Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco and CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS (CAMS FH MAS) will join forces next season, combining their resources and expertise to better support aspiring professionals. The new mixed-gender team is expected to field up to 24 riders (both male and female juniors), offering a more structured pathway towards the elite ranks.
Team principals Ian Mansel-Thomas (founder of Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco) and Giles Pidcock (who runs CAMS FH MAS) say the merger is driven by a shared mission to help young cyclists build careers in the sport. “The junior scene at international level, at least on the men’s side, is increasingly being dominated by teams that are part of WorldTour setups – the likes of Grenke (Auto Eder, affiliated with Bora–Hansgrohe), AG2R, Soudal-QuickStep, Jegg-Skil-DJR (Visma Lease a Bike), and Cannibal B Victorious (Bahrain Victorious),” Mansel-Thomas explained. “Our new mixed team for British and Irish riders will be able to compete alongside those teams at the top of junior cycling.” Pidcock echoed the sentiment that combining forces will help the British outfits keep pace: “We are proud of what we’ve achieved so far, but the sport is moving on at pace. Pooling our resources with Ian’s team will create economies of scale, enabling us to invest more into the athletes we support so we can continue to race at the front.”
Details of the merger – including the new team name and sponsorship structure – have yet to be finalised. However, it is expected that the current lead sponsors and partners of both squads will be retained in some form, creating a larger budget and support network to fund a full international racing calendar. Both existing teams already race extensively across the UK and Europe; by merging, they aim to solidify their presence in top junior events and strengthen ties with professional development programmes. (Notably, Tofauti Everyone Active is the only UK-based junior team with formal links to a WorldTour outfit, through a collaboration with Team dsm-firmenich’s men’s and women’s teams. The unified team plans to deepen such WorldTour connections going forward.)
CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS: small Team, big results
CAMS–Fensham Howes–MAS was founded in 2019 and has quickly become one of the UK’s premier junior development teams. Operated independently of any WorldTour feeder programme, the team is entirely volunteer-run – yet it has punched above its weight on both the domestic and international stage. Under the guidance of team manager Giles Pidcock – the father of Olympic champion Tom Pidcock – the squad has built a reputation for nurturing riders from youth racing into the professional ranks. Approximately 70 percent of its alumni have gone on to earn contracts with pro teams or top under-23 development programmes, a remarkable success rate. Graduates include the likes of Sam Watson (now riding for Ineos Grenadiers in the WorldTour), Bob Donaldson (Team Jayco-AlUla), and Max Poole (who progressed to Team Picnic-PostNL’s WorldTour squad).
On the road, the CAMS FH MAS team has racked up an impressive palmarès over the past few seasons. Their riders have claimed victory in prestigious junior races such as Liège–Bastogne–Liège Juniors, Danilith Nokere Koerse Juniors, and the Junior Tour of Wales, among others. These results highlight the squad’s ability to compete with – and often beat – the development teams of far better-funded WorldTour outfits.
Despite its success, CAMS FH MAS has remained a relatively small operation – typically fielding only six junior men each season. By teaming up with Tofauti, the programme will gain additional riders, a female squad, and greater resources, helping it to sustain its high level. The merger should also alleviate some challenges of running an independent team, like securing funding for international travel and equipment. Pidcock noted that combining the staff and sponsors of the two teams will create efficiencies that allow more investment directly into the riders. In practical terms, a unified budget could mean more racing opportunities in Europe and better support (coaching, mechanics, etc.) at races – all crucial for juniors aiming to catch the eye of professional scouts.
Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco: a different approach to development
Tofauti Everyone Active Majaco was launched in 2020 by Ian Mansel-Thomas with an emphasis on doing things “differently.” In fact, Tofauti means “different” in Swahili – a nod to the team’s partnership with the Tofauti Foundation, a charity founded by Olympic gold-medallist Crista Cullen. From the outset, Mansel-Thomas aimed to offer a development programme with a strong support network on and off the bike for riders, including mentorship and educational guidance alongside racing. The team also made a point to recruit both male and female juniors – one of the first British teams to run parallel junior squads for boys and girls, each with equal standing. “We created a new kind of junior team in 2020, one that offers a strong support network… and despite not being able to race much in our first year (due to the pandemic), we’ve stuck to that ethos,” Mansel-Thomas said of the team’s founding vision.
In just a few seasons, Tofauti Everyone Active (as it was known until the recent addition of co-sponsor Majaco) has swiftly carved out a niche as a proving ground for future stars. The team’s signature bright-green kit has become a regular sight at top junior races from British roads to the cobbled classics of Flanders. And the results have followed: Tofauti’s riders have stamped their authority on major junior events, particularly on the women’s side. In an extraordinary run, the team has won the junior women’s Gent–Wevelgem for three consecutive editions – including a 1-2 finish in 2024 (with riders Amelia Cebak and Rebecca Gardiner taking first and second). They also notched victory in the Junior Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2023, courtesy of then-Team Tofauti rider Tomos Pattinson. Tofauti was notably the first – and so far, only – UK junior team to forge an official development partnership with a WorldTour outfit: it works closely with Team Picnic-PostNL, giving Tofauti riders a direct link to a top-tier professional structure.
The effectiveness of Tofauti’s programme is evident in the trajectory of its alumni. The team has helped launch several riders into professional or elite development teams. For instance, Tomos Pattinson’s win at Liège juniors propelled him to a spot with the Jumbo-Visma development squad. Another graduate, Oliver Peace, now races for the Development Team DSM-firmenich PostNL. On the women’s side, Izzy Sharp made headlines by winning Gent–Wevelgem Juniors 2023 in Tofauti colours – an achievement that earned her a contract with Trek’s Lidl-Trek WorldTour team. And just this past autumn, 18-year-old Carys Lloyd signed a three-year deal with Movistar, becoming the first rider to step directly from Tofauti’s junior ranks into a Women’s WorldTour pro team. As Mansel-Thomas proudly noted, “Her move to Movistar is a landmark achievement that speaks to the quality of our development ethos.”
A new chapter: joining forces for 2026
The creation of a single, mixed-gender “super-team” promises obvious benefits: pooling staff, vehicles and sponsor funds should give Britain’s top juniors deeper coaching, steadier race support and more chances to test themselves on the hard-edged European circuit that now defines modern talent ID. A clearer, well-signposted pathway to the WorldTour could also sharpen scouts’ focus on British talent and offer riders a more predictable progression from national series to pro contract. Yet consolidation carries risks. Concentrating the country’s best 17- and 18-year-olds in one jersey may thin the talent across other domestic junior squads, potentially weakening start-lists at Junior National Series races and making it harder for smaller outfits to secure backers. In short, the merger could raise the ceiling for Britain’s brightest prospects, but only if the base of the pyramid remains strong enough to keep supplying them.
Both Pidcock and Mansel-Thomas stress that the heart of the project remains the same – “to help young people make careers in cycling” – but now with a stronger platform. By sharing knowledge, staff, and sponsor support, the new team aims to give riders access to more high-level racing and a clearer pathway upward. Riders will have opportunities to test themselves regularly against the world’s top juniors, from the windswept cobbles of spring classics to mountainous stage races, all while wearing a British team jersey.
The official team name and sponsors for 2026 are still to be confirmed. The coming months will likely bring announcements on the new roster, leadership structure, and calendar. In the meantime, both existing teams continue with their 2025 campaigns separately, but with a shared vision on the horizon.
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