Teams & Riders The Great Big Cycling Transfers, Extensions, and Rumours Thread

[18-Valve. (pithy)]

2M + for Almeida is insane.

Or it used to be. It's the new normal. When you have a few rich teams this is what you'll get.

Crazy that other teams were willing to pay even more. Will take some time getting used to.

 

[Red Rick]

Or it used to be. It's the new normal. When you have a few rich teams this is what you'll get.

Crazy that other teams were willing to pay even more. Will take some time getting used to.

No I think even in comparison to Pogacar going for 5M + this is insane.

Almeida is really good, but he's neither a finished prospect nor a top 5 future talent.

 

[southwards]

We need to take Almeida in his context, he mingled with Pogacar and co in the early stage races and was the best rider in the final week at the Giro. If we compare his performance at last year Giro and now it's easy to see how much he improved, even if his final place was lower. I think he has a lot of potential, not Tour-winning against Pogacar, but surely Giro-winning.

 

[Red Rick]

We need to take Almeida in his context, he mingled with Pogacar and co in the early stage races and was the best rider in the final week at the Giro. If we compare his performance at last year Giro and now it's easy to see how much he improved, even if his final place was lower. I think he has a lot of potential, not Tour-winning against Pogacar, but surely Giro-winning.

He might be. But that would give him a somewhat limited ceiling along with the uncertainty of even getting there.

I think that while he's been consistent, it's also been consistently short of the level he would need to be to be worth that much, but maybe I just don't know how much riders go for these days.

 

[ice&fire]

2M for Almeida puts him at Viviani level

 

[Netserk]

No I think even in comparison to Pogacar going for 5M + this is insane.

Almeida is really good, but he's neither a finished prospect nor a top 5 future talent.

He isn’t? I can’t think of 5 greater talents. Ayuso is more uncertain, but let him be one of them. Then there’s Evenepoel and Pidcock. Who then? I can’t think of another rider that hasn’t yet won big that I would pay more to secure for 5 years.

 

[Red Rick]

He isn’t? I can’t think of 5 greater talents. Ayuso is more uncertain, but let him be one of them. Then there’s Evenepoel and Pidcock. Who then?

Well I do consider him part of the same cohort as Bernal and Pogacar, so them.

And now I think of it, I can't find many reasons to put him higher than Vingegaard either.

 

[Netserk]

I consider them finished prospects (in your words). What you see is what you get.

EDIT: (Bernal and Pogi that is)

 

[southwards]

Well I do consider him part of the same cohort as Bernal and Pogacar, so them.

And now I think of it, I can't find many reasons to put him higher than Vingegaard either.

Bernal and Vingegaard are both almost two years older than him. But I'd agree the Dane is about the same level, which puts him as one of the hottest prospects in the peloton. Bernal I think is better, but that depends on the parcours.

 

[Froome]

Bora offered more money than uae. So, that money that you are talking about, could be more.

 

[carolina]

He said basically today to "abola" that he is gonna win between 2 and 3 millions per year.

I wouldn't assume that he confirmed that value from his words:

"It can even be 2 or 3 millions a year, I'm not moving to UAE for the money."

He says other teams had better money offers, but he already knew Matxin since he was a junior, he liked the objectives that were presented to him and we was promised a leadership role.

 

[BlueRoads]

I wouldn't assume that he confirmed that value from his words:

"It can even be 2 or 3 millions a year, I'm not moving to UAE for the money."

He says other teams had better money offers, but he already knew Matxin since he was a junior, he liked the objectives that were presented to him and we was promised a leadership role.

Hm, from an objective point of view, what would you say speaks for UAE instead of Bora?
I'm sure he could get a leadership role at Bora, too, probably even at the Tour, whereas Pogacar for now should be well ahead of him. Could it be the experience with Evenepoel, that he fears that Bora might favour a German rider over him in the future while he thinks he's the better choice?
What objectives could UAE offer him that Bora can't? And Bora seem to work quite professionally, too, they have good material.
Is it Matxin in the end?

 

[Red Rick]

Hm, from an objective point of view, what would you say speaks for UAE instead of Bora?
I'm sure he could get a leadership role at Bora, too, probably even at the Tour, whereas Pogacar for now should be well ahead of him. Could it be the experience with Evenepoel, that he fears that Bora might favour a German rider over him in the future while he thinks he's the better choice?
What objectives could UAE offer him that Bora can't? And Bora seem to work quite professionally, too, they have good material.
Is it Matxin in the end?

I assume it's Matxin.

 

[tobydawq]

nor a top 5 future talent.

He's not?

I would have agreed but I certainly think a few things shifted in that final Giro week.

 

[carolina]

I'd rather see him at Bora also, but if I had to guess, the presence of Rui Costa and the Oliveira brothers was significant. I think they also have some portuguese mechanics. If we add the fact that he already knows Matxin rather well, maybe he prefers UAE because it will be easier to fit in.

 

[Red Rick]

He's not?

I would have agreed but I certainly think a few things shifted in that final Giro week.

Yeah may have to put him ahead of Evenepoel right now, but the latter does have much more uncertainty. We can argue Pidcock might not matter as a GT prospect, but I certainly don't rate him over Vingegaard, who despite being older only did his 2nd GT of his career too this year and got 2nd behind Pogacar.

However a rather simple issue remains is that even 2 "finished products" and TdF/multiple GT winners are roughly in his age range.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Or it used to be. It's the new normal. When you have a few rich teams this is what you'll get.

Crazy that other teams were willing to pay even more. Will take some time getting used to.

Ineos/Sky were paying Poels 1M per year and Diego Rosa almost 1.2M per year, so it's nothing new.
I don't get Ackermann joining UAE when they just signed another gc rider, he can't expect to get lots of support and chances to actually ride gts.

 

[Salvarani]

A lot of talk about money, but at least the cyclists are getting paid more for the stuff they put themselves through. One of the hardest and dangerous sports in the world.

There can both be positive and negative aspects with it.

Cycling is rapidly growing in a lot of areas.

 

[BlueRoads]

A lot of talk about money, but at least the cyclists are getting paid more for the stuff they put themselves through. One of the hardest and dangerous sports in the world.

There can both be positive and negative aspects with it.

Cycling is rapidly growing in a lot of areas.

You can always discuss what's "fair" for a cyclist, but in my opinion the point here is the change to long-term contracts (which will lead to more selling) and that there is another player in the market which some might see as a welcome rival to Skyneos, but if they are simply outskying Ineos I'm not sure that's what we wished for.

 

[Anderis]

Ineos/Sky were paying Poels 1M per year and Diego Rosa almost 1.2M per year, so it's nothing new.

Poels was totally worth it though. Rosa not so much.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Ineos/Sky were paying Poels 1M per year and Diego Rosa almost 1.2M per year, so it's nothing new.

Why would they ever offer Rosa that much money?
He was a better rider before he signed with them, but no way he was ever worth 1.2M a year.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Why would they ever offer Rosa that much money?
He was a better rider before he signed with them, but no way he was ever worth 1.2M a year.

They overpayed him to get him to leave Astana.
It was 3.5M over 3 years, so close to 1.2M per year and he only won Coppi e Bartali for them...

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

They overpayed him to get him to leave Astana.
It was 3.5M over 3 years, so close to 1.2M per year and he only won Coppi e Bartali for them...

it was a very strange decision from the start though. he was old enough to be a more or less known quantity.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

They overpayed him to get him to leave Astana.
It was 3.5M over 3 years, so close to 1.2M per year and he only won Coppi e Bartali for them...

Wow, no wonder they couldn't afford Froome's wages anymore

 

[tobydawq]

I think they mismanaged Rosa. When he rode for Astana, he wore rosa coloured glasses and I don't think he did that for Sky. Then the magic obviously disappeared.