"There are only a few left who still brake’" INEOS rider leaves the "incredibly dangerous" sport of cycling behind at 36

Puccio joined Team Sky in 2011 and from that moment on, the Italian never wore another jersey in the peloton. After fifteen years, his career is coming to an end. “After so many years, I felt the need to say: enough. During recent training sessions, I even felt a little melancholic, but during the race, I felt the fatigue.”

“It's been a lifetime,” Puccio says, looking back on his debut more than fourteen years ago. “I've always worn the same jersey because I felt comfortable in this group. I've seen many teammates come and go, as well as the staff change. I'm not the only one, but I am one of the few left from the original project.”

In his career, the veteran says he “never had any major problems.” “My first real injury occurred this year when I broke my wrist just before the Tour of the Alps. I would have liked to ride the Giro d'Italia again, but instead I had to stop racing for two months.” In the end, Puccio, a skilled domestique, did not win any races himself.

The thing that the Italian will perhaps remember most is how cycling has changed over the years. “It demands more and more. To stay competitive, I did three training sessions a day last winter. I went to the gym in the morning, on my bike, and then on the rollers, dressed to sweat. How long can a young person keep up this pace?”

“There has been a revolution in nutrition,” Puccio continues. “In the past, you would have a normal five-hour fast after an omelet, but now you start training with specific, personalized sessions, with bags full of gels. You have to get used to consuming 120 grams per hour, which is a lot.”

The speed in the peloton has also increased significantly. “It's incredibly dangerous and exhausting. There are only a few of us who brake, and if you suddenly slow down, you lose 40 positions, which is difficult to make up,” says the veteran, referring to the safety issues. “If you leave a little space, they come at you from all sides.”

According to him, it's not about the gears on the bike. “It's about the mindset. The accidents we see on TV are only 1% of what happens. In a group, you're constantly pushing and feeling the pressure from the people around you. The peloton is really very compact.”

The Italian sees a very clear difference with the past. “In the past, you only experienced this madness at the finish line, but now it starts at kilometer zero. Recently, I reached 84 km/h on a descent, and I was scared. Unfortunately, I fear it will only get worse,” concludes the retiring cyclist.

So what will Puccio focus on now? “I’ve taken up gardening; it’s incredibly relaxing,” says the Italian. “My father-in-law passed this passion on to me. He always took care of our garden, but lately I like to do everything myself, from turning the plants so they get sunlight from all sides and don't bend over, to pruning.”

That said, the INEOS man is not abandoning cycling. “My love of plants remains a hobby. I've enrolled in the UCI training program to become a sports director. I want to stay with the team and would like to move up to the team car, even for another team.”