Gabriela Guerra has signed her first professional road contract at 32, with Cofidis adding the Brazilian esports specialist to its women’s ProTeam roster from 2027.
The two-year deal will take Guerra from indoor racing into the top level of the road scene. Cofidis announced the move after a rapid outdoor progression for the two-time UCI Cycling Esports World Championships silver medallist.
Guerra said she feels “curious” and “really excited” about joining the French squad. She also wants to test whether her e-cycling strengths can carry across to road racing.
Gabriela Guerra follows an unusual path to the road
Cofidis described Guerra’s sporting route as resembling “a TV series, a soap opera.” The summary fits a career path with few parallels in the women’s peloton.
Guerra moved to Germany at age 10. As a teenager, she began skateboarding and documented her progress on YouTube.
That same online presence later helped her share her cycling development. She discovered Zwift through a Google search in the winter of 2021, while running her own Brazilian honey business.
Virtual racing quickly became more than a side project. Guerra built a strong competitive profile indoors, especially on MyWhoosh.
Reports earlier this year placed her income from MyWhoosh competition in six figures. She often raced at demanding hours, including starts in the early morning.
Her breakthrough also came on the biggest esports stage. Guerra has twice finished second at the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships.
Cofidis move comes after first road wins
Guerra only recently committed to transferring her engine to the road. In September last year, she joined German Continental team Wheel Divas.
That move came two months before she claimed her second silver medal at the Esports Worlds. She also committed to racing more lower-level road events in 2026.
Her outdoor record already includes two victories from the season. She won a German national race and the Mirabelle Classic in France.
The Mirabelle Classic gave her experience against ProTeams. Cofidis were among the teams in that race, placing Guerra directly alongside future teammates.
Guerra said those late-season road appearances gave her confidence and attracted Cofidis’s attention. The results also showed she could compete outside the controlled demands of virtual racing.
For Cofidis, the signing adds a rider with high power, proven race craft indoors, and little conventional development history. Her adaptation to positioning, weather, bunch dynamics, and long road calendars will now shape the next phase.
Indoor racing continues to create road opportunities
Guerra is not the first rider to turn virtual success into a professional road career. Jay Vine and Neve Bradbury both earned first pro contracts through the Zwift Academy in 2020.
Vine later joined UAE Team Emirates-XRG, while Bradbury moved to Canyon-SRAM. Both have gone on to win Grand Tour stages.
Guerra’s route differs because she arrives later and after a lucrative esports period. Her first pro road contract begins when many riders already have years in the professional bunch.
She enters the move with enthusiasm rather than public caution. Guerra said she has no particular apprehensions about the challenge ahead.
She added that she wants to give her best, support the team, and discover the highest level of road racing. Her Cofidis career will begin in 2027.