Team Astana

[Mayomaniac]

Yes but now it seems like it's final.

The writing was one the wall once Shefer and Sedun got fired, they were part of Vino's inner circle. Looks like he lost the internal power struggle.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Even when you are sure that you have gotten rid of him, Vino is never truly gone.

 

[Armchair cyclist]

No more Vino options? No more options for Vino?

 

[perico]

WTF. This is like when Tinkov fired Riis but worse.

 

[Big Doopie]

Can only hope this will be permanent.

Vinokourov is a blight on cycling.

Now, if only something can be done about Bahrain…

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Can only hope this will be permanent.

Vinokourov is a blight on cycling.

Now, if only something can be done about Bahrain…

Good idea.
Vino could move over to Bahrain!

 

[staubsauger]

Is this a hostile takeover led by Bruyneel, Bauer and Yana Seel, has Vino fallen out with the new Kazakhs government & businessmen or will Martinelli eventually come out of the blue with a big Italian sponsor to take over the team as Samruk Kazyna and the rest of the Kazakh business consortium wants to get rid of Astana pro cycling?

Looks like @Mayomaniac had a good informant!

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Is this a hostile takeover led by Bruyneel, Bauer and Yana Sen, has Vino fallen out with the new Kazakhs government & businessmen or will Martinelli eventually come out of the blue with a big Italian sponsor to take over the team as Samruk Kazyna and the Kazakh business consortium wants to get rid of Astana pro cycling?

Let's pray for a Mercatone Vino team.

 

[staubsauger]

Let's pray for a Mercatone Vino team.

United Colors of Benetton Pro Cycling

With colorful and flamboyant racing as corporate strategy!

 

[Mayomaniac]

Is this a hostile takeover led by Bruyneel, Bauer and Yana Seel, has Vino fallen out with the new Kazakhs government & businessmen or will Martinelli eventually come out of the blue with a big Italian sponsor to take over the team as Samruk Kazyna and the rest of the Kazakh business consortium wants to get rid of Astana pro cycling?

Looks like @Mayomaniac had a good informant!

It was mainly rumours on Italian websites, sadly I'm not an insider.
Martinelli seems to have sided with Seel and Bauer, he has been promoted to take over for Vino alongside Bauer.
Shefer and Sedun have recently signed with Gazprom, so maybe it's gonna be Gazprom-Vino 4ever?

 

[pastronef]

Is this a hostile takeover led by Bruyneel, Bauer and Yana Seel, has Vino fallen out with the new Kazakhs government & businessmen or will Martinelli eventually come out of the blue with a big Italian sponsor to take over the team as Samruk Kazyna and the rest of the Kazakh business consortium wants to get rid of Astana pro cycling?

Looks like @Mayomaniac had a good informant!

Bruyneel? why? no

 

[Samu Cuenca]

United Colors of Benetton Pro Cycling

With colorful and flamboyant racing as corporate strategy!

Yes a team for Sam Bennett (or perhaps all the Bennetts) to be on.

But it'll be iteresting to see where the team's headed now with both Fuglsang and Vlasov on their way out and Nibali possibly returning.

 

[markene2]

Is this a hostile takeover led by Bruyneel, Bauer and Yana Seel, has Vino fallen out with the new Kazakhs government & businessmen or will Martinelli eventually come out of the blue with a big Italian sponsor to take over the team as Samruk Kazyna and the rest of the Kazakh business consortium wants to get rid of Astana pro cycling?

Looks like @Mayomaniac had a good informant!

Bruyneel has nothing to do with it, he is irrelevant as piss in the wind, Seel (she is utter incompotent) and canadian shareholders are the ones to blame, they will finaly manage to oust Vino, just like Makhmetov and Kashechkin tried to in 2011. And Bruyneel tried to do in 2009 Team is dead if so, whole team was Vino, no matter what he will bounce back with a new kazakh team, im sure of it.

Its not a kazakh team anymore, and it will never be after this, *** canadian shits

 

[Mayomaniac]

Bruyneel has nothing to do with it, he is irrelevant as piss in the wind, Seel (she is utter incompotent) and canadian shareholders are the ones to blame, they will finaly manage to oust Vino, just like Makhmetov and Kashechkin tried to in 2011. And Bruyneel tried to do in 2009 Team is dead if so, whole team was Vino, no matter what he will bounce back with a new kazakh team, im sure of it.

Its not a kazakh team anymore, and it will never be after this, *** canadian shits

There was an article on an Italian website with the rumour that Johan was working as a consultant for her from the shadows.

 

[markene2]

There was an article on an Italian website with the rumour that Johan was working as a consultant for her from the shadows.

Well if there is one person in the world that has a grudge with Vino its Bruyneel, Lance and him are still seething about vino, you can even hear it on his podcast.

I dont know if i buy it, everything that has been said about seel paints her as a incompotent ape that should would probably do well running a office with constant daily reports etc. Do you have a link to the italian articles, been out of the game for quite a while.

Dont get what Bruyneel would get out of it other then revenge

(Also i thought seel was put in place from a rich kazakh shareholder? )

 

[Mayomaniac]

Well if there is one person in the world that has a grudge with Vino its Bruyneel, Lance and him are still seething about vino, you can even hear it on his podcast.

I dont know if i buy it, everything that has been said about seel paints her as a incompotent ape that should would probably do well running a office with constant daily reports etc. Do you have a link to the italian articles, been out of the game for quite a while.

Dont get what Bruyneel would get out of it other then revenge

(Also i thought seel was put in place from a rich kazakh shareholder? (his toy))

Yeah, it makes little sense. Was Seel put in place by a Kazakh shareholder? I assumed she came in over the Canadian connection.

 

[markene2]

Yeah, it makes little sense. Was Seel put in place by a Kazakh shareholder? I assumed she came in over the Canadian connection.

Its what i have heard at least, i assume she got more power with the candian connection but she has been in the team for almost three years now.

Also vlasov and lutsenko will leave the team if this is really the case and vino is gone for good, no way around it

 

[Mayomaniac]

Its what i have heard at least, i assume she got more power with the candian connection but she has been in the team for almost three years now.

Also vlasov and lutsenko will leave the team if this is really the case and vino is gone for good, no way around it

Yeah, she seems to have gained a lot more power with the canadian connection, that's what I've heard after Shefer and Sedun got fired.
Could it be that the Kazakhs are on their way out anyway and now they try to get rid of all the people who would be seen as "problematic" for a new sponsor? The fact that Martinelli got de facto promoted would make that a bit ironic, to say the least.

 

[staubsauger]

Ever since Martinelli was replaced by Vino as leading person in charge that calls the shots on sportive issues the Astana team continuesly declined performance wise. So if Seel managed to fire Vino despite his status and now replaces him with his predecessor she might not be that incompetent after all!

 

[markene2]

Yeah, she seems to have gained a lot more power with the canadian connection, that's what I've heard after Shefer and Sedun got fired.
Could it be that the Kazakhs are on their way out anyway and now they try to get rid of all the people who would be seen as "problematic" for a new sponsor? The fact that Martinelli got de facto promoted would make that a bit ironic, to say the least.

100% right i would say, its the same fate as katusha, russian side started dissapearing until the russian ethos was gone and the team was sold.

if we are talking about problematic people one could also wonder why Fofonov is still in the team then, but my educated guess is he is next to go once they line up a replacement.

They are probably thinking that no one remembers what teams martinelli was ds for, since its so many years ago. i mean maxtin is still in cycling lol.

if sedun is to be trusted (i belive he is) both vlasov and lutsenko will leave, he also said that lopez wanted to stay for the same contract he had before, but the new management keept pushing races on him after he burned out at the tour, so he could prove his value to the team. seems they are thightening the budget. i honestly dont understand what their long term goals are.

also eastern europeans are not viewed as particulary honest or trustworthy in usa/canada, one thing is for sure, they fired shefer sedun vino. Fofonov will follow soon i guess. the kazakh ethos is to be banished from the team, will be interesting to see if the italian side sticks around, and what sponsorships they can manage to retain etc next year and beyond with the new crew.

one thing is for sure, the team is no longer kazakh and wont be again, wonder if a new team will pop up

 

[markene2]

Ever since Martinelli was replaced by Vino as leading person in charge that calls the shots on sportive issues the Astana team continuesly declined performance wise. So if Seel managed to fire Vino despite his status and now replaces him with his predecessor she might not be that incompetent after all!

Just wait until next year, the performances will be way worse, and star riders will leave seel is fit to run buisnesses and other corporate projects not cycling teams

 

[staubsauger]

100% right i would say, its the same fate as katusha, russian side started dissapearing until the russian ethos was gone and the team was sold.

if we are talking about problematic people one could also wonder why Fofonov is still in the team then, but my educated guess is he is next to go once they line up a replacement.

They are probably thinking that no one remembers what teams martinelli was ds for, since its so many years ago. i mean maxtin is still in cycling lol.

if sedun is to be trusted (i belive he is) both vlasov and lutsenko will leave, he also said that lopez wanted to stay for the same contract he had before, but the new management keept pushing races on him after he burned out at the tour, so he could prove his value to the team. seems they are thightening the budget. i honestly dont understand what their long term goals are.

also eastern europeans are not viewed as particulary honest or trustworthy in usa/canada, one thing is for sure, they fired shefer sedun vino. Fofonov will follow soon i guess. the kazakh ethos is to be banished from the team, will be interesting to see if the italian side sticks around, and what sponsorships they can manage to retain etc next year and beyond with the new crew.

one thing is for sure, the team is no longer kazakh and wont be again, wonder if a new team will pop up

But isn't that eventually what we all expected ever since the 2017 Astana expo was over and Nasarbajev stepped down as president?

Astana isn't even the name of the capital anymore. I honestly don't see any business interest for the Kazakh business consortium to fund a cycling team any longer.

Maybe that's what Seel was hired for. To lead a transition or execution.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Martinelli has been named as a potential next coach of the Italian NT, if Cassani will really be the one to take over as the race director of the Giro when Vegni retires at the end of the year.

 

[markene2]

But isn't that eventually what we all expected ever since the 2017 Astana expo was over and Nasarbajev stepped down as president?

Astana isn't even the name of the capital anymore. I honestly don't see any business interest for the Kazakh business consortium to fund a cycling team any longer.

Maybe that's what Seel was hired for. To lead a transition or execution.

Good points!

I expected them to reduce the budget, but not cut funding entierly as it seems they are doing, still i find this a sad day, the lisence will be sold eventually, just wondering to whom? i cant see the italians sticking around much longer after this. Also why would canda have a pro tour team? what riders do they even have that are top level anymore.

Martinelli has been named as a potential next coach of the Italian NT, if Cassani will really be the one to take over as the race director of the Giro when Vegni retires at the end of the year.

If Martinelli leaves then its safe to say the italian core leaves also right? I just dont get where they are going with the team???

 

[Mayomaniac]

Good points!

I expected them to reduce the budget, but not cut funding entierly as it seems they are doing, still i find this a sad day, the lisence will be sold eventually, just wondering to whom? i cant see the italians sticking around much longer after this. Also why would canda have a pro tour team? what riders do they even have that are top level anymore.



If Martinelli leaves then its safe to say the italian core leaves also right? I just dont get where they are going with the team???

Probably, I also don't see Martinelli at his age as a great coach for the NT, I think he has declined over the last few years and some of his race predictions are rather bad.

Imagine the team merging with Israel Start-up Nation, there is a Canadian connection after all, that would be pretty bad...