Buffalo Soldier said:
It's not like quasi-nationalistic teams are something new, and something typical anglophone?
The majority of the pro-tour teams are already quasi nationalistic, or are planning to become more nationalistic.
Euskaltel for sure, but also the most French, Spanish and Italian teams. Both Rabobank and Lotto already said they want to focus more on Dutch/Belgian riders.
Teams from smaller countries in cycling terms (Saxo, Astana,...) are more international, because they don't really have a choice.
But quite a lot of these come from places with competition. Liquigas are not a pseudo-Italian national squad because there's also Lampre, Androni, Acqua e Sapone, CarmioOro, Flaminia, CSF etc. etc. FDJ are not a pseudo-French national squad because there's also Ag2r, Cofidis, Bouygues, Saur etc. etc.
Wanting to focus on home riders is one thing - it pleases the sponsors and builds up the fanbase - but teams like Sky are being set up as a vehicle for British cycling. There is almost no other choice. There are no other British teams that offer any viable option, and the presence of a British ProTour team that wants - nay,
needs - to have the cream of the British crop limits the options for British riders to get into other teams and develop in any other way.
And it appears to be a fad in the last couple of years for the Anglophone countries to want to set up these quasi-national teams, and they tend to be countries with strong track programs and no real history of road, yet they think they can saunter in with their PR gumf and win the Tour de France within x number of years as if the French, Dutch and Belgians have just not
thought it through enough.
"if only we'd thought to put riders in wind tunnels like Dave Brailsford, then Christophe Moreau would be a seven-time Tour winner!".
My main problem with these teams is then the way that they race. They come in with such over-the-top promises that they
must get results fast. And all they have are converted trackies, who can sprint, TT or sprint and TT. So they contribute the following to races:
1) pull back breaks and go to sprints, creating boring racing;
2) attempt to compete for GC but have no ability to attack in the hills, so do it solely by doing a good TT then wheelsucking through the mountains, creating boring racing.
They all have promise and opportunity and money. And the riders have talent, that there can be no denying. But the obsession with the Tour de France costs riders, who either are mutilated from where their strengths would have been in a vain attempt to make them GC riders (see the hopes being pinned on the likes of Geraint Thomas), or they don't accomplish anything like the results their talent deserves because of their focusing on a goal that is not as eminently achievable (see Evans, Cadel). The riders have great heart. But the teams have no soul.