Teams & Riders Israel Premier Tech

[aruipksni]

Oh yes! He made this look very easy.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1949164167774040323

View: https://x.com/LeSecteurPave_/status/1949164167774040323


Last year from what I remember he got mugged a bit by Trentin for the GC. Some questionable tactical decisions and his team going awol at crucial points, so hopefully this year goes a bit better.

-------------------------------------------

Speaking of questionable tactical decisions, from what I read there was a good chance for Stewart at the Tour yesterday, but he made a poor choice at a crucial time. Ah well.

The team has been trying no doubt to get in the breaks (successfully usually) and position themselves for the sprints etc, but the level just isn't there currently to finish it off or there's been a bit of bad luck (I'm thinking of the crash in the sprint the other day).

Woods and Lutsenko have been getting in the break, but are getting dropped fairly early. Age and a far from ideal prep for Woods playing their part.

Blackmore after his 6th on stage 10 has disappeared from the radar a bit. Not unexpected at his age and on his first Tour.

Difficult to see Ackers getting an extension after his Tour (and year). Might as well have taken Einhorn or Koggy.

----------------------------------------

Last bit of news was Van Tricht getting an early promotion to the main squad to fill the place left by Fugly's retirement.

it was their worst tour ever.
top 10s:
2024 [3,3,3,3,4,6,6,6,7,9,9,10,10]
2023 [1,4,5,8,9,9]
2021 [3,55,6,7,8,8,10]
2022 [1,1,3,6]
2020 [4,6,6,7,8,8,10]
2025 [4,6,6,8]

main problem was the team selection.
normally teams take their best riders to the tour.
top 5 riders this year are: Gee (1620), Hofsteter (705), Strong (549), Vernon (340) , Richitello (294).
None of them was taken.

the Only redeeming thing was really that Cofidis did much worst, and look worst then this team.

 

[aruipksni]

the IPT Frooming status:

the late TDF has show increase in Woods, and Lukutensko frooming.
IPT is stuck with Lukutsenko for next year also, so he can still improve,
i hope Woods will retire now.
the only good thing for them is that they only signed 16-17 riders so far, and they can still look for quality riders.

(after the TDF, i think COFIDIS can do their own Frooming graph)

 

[Leadbelly]

the only good thing for them is that they only signed 16-17 riders so far, and they can still look for quality riders.

Who do you think they should try and sign?

The thing is, when I look at the list of riders allegedly available on PCS, you can cross out so many names due to age, rumours they've already extended or signed for Ineos/Decathlon/whoever etc. Not many real quality riders or stars left.

Of course these days we don't have to restrict ourselves to just looking at the guys with expiring contracts. It could be that they can pick up someone from Redbull (Vlasov? Hindley?) if they need extra room for Evenepoel riders.

------------------------

Gonna come down to the final stage in Wallonie again for Strong and co. It's definitely not over.

Has anybody seen how Gilmore has been getting on in this race?

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https://twitter.com/x/status/1950194612762534260

View: https://x.com/LosBrolin/status/1950194612762534260


Ben Morin would be an obvious choice for the Canadian, but don't have the foggiest about the Norwegian. The team hasn't had much luck with Scandi signings in the past - SHE/MWS/Jensen/Hagen etc).

 

[aruipksni]

i think Silvan Adams need to do some management decisions first before we get to this (signings) , and i have a feeling some management guys are not to continue in 2026.

the current situation of pro-cycling (now even the TDF ratings dropped), means that Adams has no reason to be stressed himself about the relegation 3 years cycle anymore.
that's because most likely he will be able to just buy some license from one of the teams that will be fold in the future (like he did with Katusha).

about signings: it's a shame you cannot waive riders, like they do in the NBA, because it's very easy to get stuck with a bunch of riders that are just dead weight on you, and for the smallest team, it might be also their death bed.

 

[Pinot's goat]

Has anybody seen how Gilmore has been getting on in this race?

Looked very strong on stage 4. Lots of riding near the front, leading out in an intermediate sprint and still managed to finish quite high.

 

[Leadbelly]

Cheers for the info, and he gets his contract (3-yr) with the main team.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1950481136871686445

View: https://x.com/IsraelPremTech/status/1950481136871686445

 

[aruipksni]

how Israeli is Israel-premier-tech realy?
so, in latest TDF the team remove "israel" from it's publications, because it was sensitive to the security of their riders, but neither one of them was israeli. Adams then promised in the future there will be an israeli rider in this race.

so in reality we see the number of Israeli riders declining each year, so why is Adams still stick to the "Israel" name? if he was really into promoting Israeli riders, he could have just went along the Uno-X path (and Uno-X don't call themself Norway, Scandinavians or Vikings or something similar), but he went more along the UAE ,Bahrain path (but without their large budget thought) in reality the majority, and the important of his riders are Canadians and British, and European, and Israeli are not really counting, and only signed as fillers, after all the important riders were already signed.

 

[Leadbelly]

I was disappointed that they let Omer Goldstein go the other year. Always thought he was a real racer and came close in '22 to getting some big wins. One poor season the following year and he was gone.

Tbf though their current trio is the best they've had and certainly in terms of ability are far from "filler". Okay Raisberg hasn't quite pushed on from what he showed at the end of '23, but Einhorn and Koggy are both decent second division sprinters imo.

The issue as I see it though is that the team (still) has too many fast men after all these years. Once those further up the food chain have taken their share (Ackers, Vernon, Strong, Hofstetter, Stewart and maybe Askey next year). That just leaves scraps for Pickrell, Einhorn and Koggy to fight over. How many actual sprints have they contested this year? 5-6 if that? Not going to improve much with just those opportunities ie. they are "filler" a lot of the time when it comes to the calendar. How about they bite the bullet this year and let Ackermann go and thus everybody will move up a slot in the sprint ranking and get a few more opportunities.

To get back the point about the number of Israelis in the team though, I don't see a problem at the moment. It's not like any of the four in the devo team are doing amazing things and are being blocked from coming up. Tene could do a sprint train job I guess, Edinger is still young ect and did decently in juniors, but moving them up would feel like they are the "filler" you are talking about.

Maybe the next crop of juniors will prove a bit better. Omer Ramon who I've highlighted before is maybe the best bet or Or Goldstein (not sure if a relation or not).

----------------------------------------

At least three riders from Picusa btw look to be moving up to WT devo teams next year. They aren't named in the article below, but you don't need to be Nostradamus to guess one of them. Maranchon was of course linked to IPT as well, but not sure if that has cooled after his illness.

Picusa Academy, el mejor trampolín: tres corredores darán el salto a equipos continentales de desarrollo en 2026 - Zikloland

Picusa Academy se consolida como uno de los mejores equipos júnior de España y de Europa en la formación y promoción de jóvenes talentos. Si en 2025 hubo

www.zikloland.com

 

[aruipksni]

I'm comparing Silvan Adams to Oleg Tinkoff.
they both are billionaires that are crazy about cycling, and they both invested a lot of their private money, and both had unrealistic expectations about their success in the pro sport of road cycling.
it's now clear that all the teams are synching to the 3 years period (beside UAE they are all signing riders till 2028). so in 2028 Adams can decide if he want to continue or to fold, or sell the team if it has a license, or buy a team if he doesn't have a license, but if i look at the latest moves, i really start to think he will follow Tinkoff's path eventually.

 

[Leadbelly]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1953498520050078008

View: https://x.com/IsraelPremTech/status/1953498520050078008


Things are going well in Portugal too. So far anyway, with two stage podiums. Didn't see today's finishing climb, but a bit surprised to see Gilmore up there as I thought it might be a bit long. Was a there a headwind?

Pologne from a sprint view point was pretty bad though. Difficult to see the IPT pair of Cote and Vernon in the run-in as they were so far back. The team they have here isn't the best for helping them and unfortunately for the Brit that might be the case at the Vuelta too.

Looking forward to seeing how Frigo gets on during the rest of the week. Got to limit his losses on Saturday and then claw back some places on Sunday. Top-ten would be fantastic!

 

[Leadbelly]

Seventh in the end for Frigo.

Portugal went so well that it wouldn't surprise me if the team didn't get invited back next year. The only real disappointment was Marti again. He got a stage win, but his GC hopes went up in smoke on the first big climb. Not sure what's happening there. Stagiaire Zac Marriage did a decent job as a back-up and finished just outside the top-ten. Plaza says he'll be on the team next year.

https://www.facebook.com/IsraelPremierTech/posts/pfbid02iHVy9wxJGEKrDX6voACC38r65fmtLvPjpV2uPwYXntc2BEqMYxCJXi2wXiRsEpHsl

View: https://www.facebook.com/IsraelPremierTech/posts/pfbid02iHVy9wxJGEKrDX6voACC38r65fmtLvPjpV2uPwYXntc2BEqMYxCJXi2wXiRsEpHsl

 

[aruipksni]

he did it:

Michael Woods, the Canadian cyclist, has announced his retirement from professional road cycling at the end of the 2025 season. The 38-year-old, who joined the sport after a successful running career, cited the physical and mental toll of professional cycling, as well as the time away from family, as key factors in his decision. He plans to race in the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec and Montréal, possibly the World Championships, and some final European races before retiring.

Key Details	Value
Reason for Retirement	Physical and mental toll of the sport, time away from family
Retirement Date	End of the 2025 season
Last Races	Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec, Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal, World Championships (possibly), final European races

Woods has had a distinguished career, including a Tour de France stage victory and a bronze medal at the World Championships. He joined Israel-Premier Tech five years ago and has become known for his mountain breakaways and as a respected teammate. In his blog during the Tour de France, he highlighted the dangers of professional cycling. He also mentioned the sacrifices he's made, including spending time away from his family. Woods' retirement marks the end of an era for Canadian cycling.

 

[Leadbelly]

Frigo fissa gli obiettivi: Vuelta per le tappe e per una maglia azzurra

Marco Frigo arriva da due belle top 10 nelle generali di Baloise e Pologne. Ora alla Vuelta punta alle tappe per una convocazione in nazionale

bici.pro

Short interview with Frigo talking about Pologne and his goals for the rest of the season.

Now it's La Vuelta. Has Marco Frigo already set his goals?

Yes, of course. As a team, we're starting out aiming for partial wins without looking at the overall standings. I'm starting out with the same intention. For me, every stage will be a good opportunity to try the right move, obviously trying to exploit any free moments for the attackers. I don't have any specific plans; we'll just see how the race unfolds.

 

[aruipksni]

Israel–Premier Tech (IPT) roster for Vuelta a España 2025:​

The official team list for La Vuelta, released on August 20, 2025, includes the following eight riders Israel — Premier Tech Pro Cycling Team:

• George Bennett (NZL)
• Pier-André Côté (CAN)
• Marco Frigo (ITA)
• Jan Hirt (CZE)
• Nadav Raisberg (ISR)
• Matthew Riccitello (USA)
• Jake Stewart (GBR)
• Ethan Vernon (GBR)

Notably, Derek Gee is not on this roster.

 

[Gratemans]

Well, that's certainly weird 🤔

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Seems like Gee took a break from training for 10 days at the end of July, and since then his training rides were shorter. Injury issues?

 

[aruipksni]

well the only reason i can think about is that the team is trying to get other riders a second chance.
(think POGACAR in UAE, but in a smaller scale...)
since Gee and Strong are the main points providers for the team, and the team doesn't need really points right now, and they have like a bunch of riders they need to think if they want to extend for next year...

if Gee was doing the Vuelta he could have scored many more points, so eventually he and also Strong
could have donated half of the teams points, while other riders contribution was very very low.

UCI points situation now:

 

[Netserk]

Israel–Premier Tech (IPT) roster for Vuelta a España 2025:​

The official team list for La Vuelta, released on August 20, 2025, includes the following eight riders Israel — Premier Tech Pro Cycling Team:

• George Bennett (NZL)
• Pier-André Côté (CAN)
• Marco Frigo (ITA)
• Jan Hirt (CZE)
• Nadav Raisberg (ISR)
• Matthew Riccitello (USA)
• Jake Stewart (GBR)
• Ethan Vernon (GBR)

Notably, Derek Gee is not on this roster.

I never had any great expectations for the Vuelta, and it honestly surprised me to see PCS have him on the startlist so early. Riccitello can hopefully have a clean run at GC.

 

[Leadbelly]

Yeah it's a strange one.

I had read some talk (not really even rumours, just people guessing/connecting dots/adding 2+2 and getting 5) that he didn't want to ride for the team any more and had removed all mentions of Israel from his social media bios (not any posts though).

Illness or whatever seems more likely, but who knows. Deliberately going for an alternative calendar of ToB or Quebec/Montreal + the Italian one day races just wouldn't make sense - so it can't be that.

Good to see Stewart along to give Vernon some help. Him and Frigo will again end up as two of the riders with the most racing days in the team. I'd love a Frigo stage win.

 

[aruipksni]

Yeah it's a strange one.

I had read some talk (not really even rumours, just people guessing/connecting dots/adding 2+2 and getting 5) that he didn't want to ride for the team any more and had removed all mentions of Israel from his social media bios (not any posts though).

Illness or whatever seems more likely, but who knows. Deliberately going for an alternative calendar of ToB or Quebec/Montreal + the Italian one day races just wouldn't make sense - so it can't be that.

Good to see Stewart along to give Vernon some help. Him and Frigo will again end up as two of the riders with the most racing days in the team. I'd love a Frigo stage win.

on reddit they think that he is probably injured, because he hasn't put any power data numbers for a long time.

another theory I'm thinking about is that he might be involved in some sort of a Evenpoel buyout plot, when some big team want to pay him much more then IPT does right now, or another theory is that he just want to open is contract, because he is not paid enough, and now when froome, woods, fuglsang ext .. are gone, there is a lot of money to give away.

 

[aruipksni]

💰 IPT Riders ROI (Achievements per Salary)​

🏆 Huge Positive ROI​

1. Derek Gee (2023–present)

• Salary: Started on a very modest contract (~€150k–200k estimated, as a neo-pro).
• Achievements: Giro 2023 breakout (4× 2nd places), Giro 2025 stage win + 4th overall.
• ROI: Off the charts. He gave IPT Tour de France-level visibility at a fraction of the cost of big stars. Probably the best value signing the team ever made.

2. Hugo Houle (2020–present)

• Salary: Estimated €400k–500k range.
• Achievements: 2022 Tour de France stage win, huge exposure in Canada (historic national moment).
• ROI: Extremely high — one stage win at the Tour is worth millions in sponsor visibility.

3. Ben Hermans (2018–2022)

• Salary: Relatively low compared to WT stars (~€250k–350k).
• Achievements: Wins at Tour of Austria (2018, 2019), other smaller stage races.
• ROI: For the price, very good. He kept the team collecting points/wins during the ProConti years.

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⚖️ Balanced ROI​

4. Dan Martin (2020–2021)

• Salary: Estimated €1.5–2M/year.
• Achievements: Giro d’Italia stage win 2021, 4th at Vuelta 2020, consistent GT visibility.
• ROI: Fair. Expensive, but he delivered the team’s first Grand Tour breakthrough, justifying the cost.

5. Michael Woods (2021–present)

• Salary: ~€1.5–2M/year.
• Achievements: Multiple stage wins (including Tour 2023), top GC/top 10 finishes in Monuments.
• ROI: Positive. High cost, but his Tour stage alone is worth his salary, plus he’s consistent.

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📉 Negative ROI​

6. Chris Froome (2021–present)

• Salary: Widely reported around €5.5–6M/year, one of the highest in the peloton.
• Achievements: No WT wins for IPT, only minor visibility on road.
• ROI: Pure sporting ROI = terrible. Marketing ROI (media, sponsors, global attention) helps offset, but from a results-per-salary view, easily the worst deal in pro cycling of the last decade.

7. Jakob Fuglsang (2022–present)

• Salary: Likely €2M+.
• Achievements: Very few results for IPT, occasional top-10s in Ardennes.
• ROI: Low. Paid like a star, but no big wins delivered.

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📊 ROI Ranking (pure salary vs results)​

1. Derek Gee – best value ever.
2. Hugo Houle – massive return for mid-level salary.
3. Ben Hermans – cheap + delivered key wins early.
4. Michael Woods – expensive but worth it with Tour + consistent visibility.
5. Dan Martin – expensive but delivered one Giro stage + credibility.
6. Jakob Fuglsang – costly, not much return.
7. Chris Froome – astronomically costly, no sporting ROI.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1958805294995079650

View: https://x.com/cirogazzetta/status/1958805294995079650?t=qYCkvf16s-Zib1iKI3F1xQ&s=19

 

[Dazed and Confused]

I guess they have to stick with Froome then....

 

[aruipksni]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1958805294995079650

View: https://x.com/cirogazzetta/status/1958805294995079650?t=qYCkvf16s-Zib1iKI3F1xQ&s=19

i was right ...

🔹 Rider Performance Table (2025 Season)​

Rider	UCI Points	Wins	National Titles	Salary (€M)	Weighted ROI
Derek Gee	1,620	6	1 (Canada RR)	0.3	6,870
Corbin Strong	1,209	5	0	0.8	2,730
Hugo Hofstetter	653	1	0	0.5	1,510
Matthew Riccitello	334	2	0	0.45	1,411
Ethan Vernon	355	1	0	0.25	1,241
Jake Stewart	291	2	0	0.35	1,101
Marco Frigo	331	1	0	0.4	1,078
Joseph Blackmore	344	2	0	0.2	1,720
Pascal Ackermann	355	3	0	1.0	851
Pier-André Côté	165	1	0	0.2	1,075
George Bennett	174	1	0	0.8	298
Alexey Lutsenko	145	0	0	1.8	86.1
Michael Woods	170	0	0	2.5	68
Jakob Fuglsang	0	0	0	2.0	0
Chris Froome	0	0	0	5.0	0

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Yeah it's a strange one.

I had read some talk (not really even rumours, just people guessing/connecting dots/adding 2+2 and getting 5) that he didn't want to ride for the team any more and had removed all mentions of Israel from his social media bios (not any posts though).

#LeadbellyKnows

Let's try to avoid too much splitting of the conversation: there's already a bit of discussion over this move and the way it is being done in Gee's own thread, so it's probably best to keep it there.