Zdenek Stibal is ending his 12-year tenure at QuickStep-AlphaVinyl and moving to BikeExchange-Jayco next season. However, the 37-year-old classic rider has big ambitions for the rest of his career, despite a tough season due to illness and family commitments.

The Czech rider is a former cyclocross world champion and has been on the Paris-Roubaix podium twice before, winning the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Strade Bianche, and E3 Harelbeke.

However, he has been away from winning since 2020, and after competing with Quick Step his entire World Tour road career, he is now stepping into the unknown with a new team.

In an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws, Stibal vowed that the 2023 season will be different, with an eye on winning at Monument, and that he will "never stop dreaming" of bigger goals.

"I never stop dreaming. It may not be realistic, but I still want to win the Monument." [A stage win in the Giro would be nice, and then I would have won a stage in every major Tour. And then I want to go back to the Tour one more time."

"The most important thing is that 2023 will not be another year like 2021 or 2022. I have suffered setbacks and I have been sick a lot. Mentally, I'm not good enough anymore.

"I am satisfied. It was a very bad season, but now I feel good again. Going to a new team is motivating; I signed a one-year contract, but I might want to continue for many years. It's just like time has turned back seven years. It's nice to be able to make plans again."

Stibal signed with Quick Step in 2011, bolstering his road racing in the process. He won 18 races, including stage wins at the Eneco Tour, Tour, and Vuelta, but his time with the team came to an end when he was told he would not be offered a new contract.

He said he was not angry about the situation, adding that he understood why he had to leave.

"Before, I would have shed tears, but now I am a different person.

"My time at Quickstep was a third of my life, and I'm grateful. I'm not mad at Patrick or anything. The older I get, the more I realize that cycling is pure business. I didn't perform for two years, but I got paid. If that's the reason I can't stay here, I understand that."

"Not everything went the way I wanted, but I always think long and hard before making a decision. So I don't think I would have made a different choice. I have good memories of Quickstep. I will never forget the feeling, especially in the group."

"Winning the Tour with Kittel and Cavendish, and finishing hand in hand with Gilbert, Lampert, and Viviani in Milan-San Remo, which Julien won. That was great, but now it's time to do something else, which is also great."

Steibal said that he did not sign with BikeExchange-Jayco simply to cash a check, and that despite several seasons of illness and injury, he still has a passion for racing.

The 2022 campaign was also marked by personal tragedy, as his wife suffered a miscarriage in the spring and he went through another very difficult time.

"I've learned to keep things in perspective," he said.

"But I had help with that, I was on my knees in April, but my family and some very good friends who were there for me through the bad times gave me another mental boost. I also found a good mental coach.

"I want to continue road cycling--combined with cross-country and gravel racing. If racing is going to be my hobby, I want to spend my time with my little boy."

Stibal has already started the 'cross season, taking on five races, including the World Cup at home in Tabor and Tuesday's Nacht van Vorderden, where he finished 12th.

He said he'll be back on a cross bike at Christmas and maybe even at the world championships this year, but he'll do better next season.

"That was the last one for now. 'I'll be back for one or six races at Christmas. If that goes well, I'll be at the World Championships. Cyclocross is a function of the road. It's all preparation

"I'm definitely going to do more cross next year. And the World Championships will be in Tabor. I don't really expect to win there, but I had a feeling on Sunday that if I had been allowed to start at the front, I could have finished in the top 10.

"Sure, Van Aert, Van Der Pol, and Pidcock weren't there, but if we start special training next winter, we should still be able to perform reasonably well."