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

Page 400 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Like I said a week back, I rather have him out now than him being annoying and acting like a brat for years and bringing the vibe down within a team. He was going to leave at some point anyways with his talent. It's obviously sad as everyone wants a supertalent, but you also have to be realistic, a team like Lotto would have thourble "handling" him in modern cycling. In the end I think Lotto has way bigger things to worry about right now than a spoiled kid. I'm looking forward to him having his tantrums at another team. I'm glad it's one of the superteams, now I can pray on his downfal without mixed feelings.

No seriously, I don't really mind supertalents leaving for better and for money. It's just modern reality sadly. Definitely with kids that have been told they are special from a young age, and kids that have managers that only care about the money. What I don't like about him is that he goes to the press, makes some stuff up about Lotto being a problem after he was literally praising them ("I need a family, I need my friends with me, Lotto is perfect for this bla bla bla") only a few weeks back and given the fact he was already talking to Bora before Avenir. This whole "im overraced" sounds more like an excuse to "break" (not really break if he has a release clause his contract, knowing that the cycling world doesn't really like riders who do stuff like that.
You sound extremely salty. Why is he an arrogant brat? Do you have concrete examples of this, besides that he goes to the press and says that he wished Lotto didn't race him as much?
 
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Yeah, Visma - the team where MTB careers end.
Alpecin seem to have missed out on a few young multi discipline talents recently......

Does Alpecin have money available to sign anyone after keeping their leaders?

Their roster for 2025 looks lackluster atm (other than Philipsen and MVDP) and worse than that, barely any rumours are floating their way of riders that can show something short term.
 
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Imogen Wolff and Viktória Chladoňová will ride for Visma for the next three years. Wolff will also be a stagiaire for rest of the season and will be making her debut in GP Fourmies tomorrow. It sounds like they will both continue to ride CX, but Chladoňová's MTB career might be about to end/put on hold.

View: https://x.com/visma_lab_women/status/1832313067364839551
You can't keep them apart for long, Wolff and Ferguson commence their professional careers at the same race.
 
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Does Alpecin have money available to sign anyone after keeping their leaders?

Their roster for 2025 looks lackluster atm (other than Philipsen and MVDP) and worse than that, barely any rumours are floating their way of riders that can show something short term.
You do wonder how much budget they have; I thought with their multi discipline success, Albert Philipsen would be going there, but no - and then they missed out on the Holmgrens, and now another in Chladonova, who is another with the Canyon connection.
Maybe they haven't got the budget, or they didn't bother showing interest - I'm not sure which is more accurate.
 
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You do wonder how much budget they have; I thought with their multi discipline success, Albert Philipsen would be going there, but no - and then they missed out on the Holmgrens, and now another in Chladonova, who is another with the Canyon connection.
Maybe they haven't got the budget, or they didn't bother showing interest - I'm not sure which is more accurate.
And now with Puck as a XCO World Champion (plus her road endeavours this year), her value must have skyrocketed as well and probably still not reflected on her current contract.

If I was Red Bull, with a rich history of sponsoring mountain biking, plus doing the first steps on the road, I would throw all the cans I could unto signing Puck, in the current field her style and personality are the better match one could get for Red Bull DNA.
 
Does Alpecin have money available to sign anyone after keeping their leaders?

Their roster for 2025 looks lackluster atm (other than Philipsen and MVDP) and worse than that, barely any rumours are floating their way of riders that can show something short term.
They extended Groves.
I expect them to move some pieces from the Dev team up to the WT-squad.
Dehairs seems like a given (he won today in the GP Rik van Looy). He's fast, but more like a PCT-sprinter at best. I think he'll nicely slot in one of the lead-outs and will occasionally get his chance. He's 80 kilos and 1m90. He fits the role perfectly.
Tibor Del Grosso is another one who seems ready, but he might want to focus on CX more.
Emiel Verstrynge should go WT-pro, he finished second in a L'avenir stage.
Before this season I would've expected Wyseure to go pro aswell, but he might stay in the CT-ranks to focus mainly on CX. Dockx is young, he'll prolly stay aswell.
Bogna is interesting, didn't race much but raced well when he did. I think he's a Zwift-academy winner?
Siebe Roesems stagnated a little bit, but he might turn into a fine domestique. Which makes me think he together with Meeussen and Kamp might also have a shot.

If I look at that Dev team there are buttloads of talent, but half those guys ride CX aswell. And you can't run 7 riders on the MVDP schedule.
 
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You do wonder how much budget they have; I thought with their multi discipline success, Albert Philipsen would be going there, but no - and then they missed out on the Holmgrens, and now another in Chladonova, who is another with the Canyon connection.
Maybe they haven't got the budget, or they didn't bother showing interest - I'm not sure which is more accurate.
I don't think Chladonova has any connection with Canyon. Apart from that, she often races with Canyon, which she probably bought with her own money, not with sponsorship.
 
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Paul Seixas : "Je n'ai pas encore décidé si je continuerai ou non avec Decathlon-AG2R, ce sera quelque chose que nous verrons après le Championnat du Monde. C'est une situation difficile dont je ne peux pas parler maintenant."

Paul Seixas: "I haven't decided yet whether I will continue with Decathlon-AG2R or not, it will be something we will see after the World Championship. It's a difficult situation that I can't talk about now."

@bici.pro

Well here we go I guess.
 
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Ineos are interested in Pablo Torres, who apparently hasn't signed a contract yet. Could just be journalist speculation/chatting s*it though, some talk on twitter but I think someone has taken an offhand Brailsford comment and ran with it.

View: https://x.com/bvdecape/status/1832126326452433096

View: https://twitter.com/danielarribas96/status/1832727124823658829


He staying at UAE and moves up to the WT team
 
I'm legitimately surprised that there was at least some fuel to the rumour about Torres and an offer there, though with UAE's financial backing he was never going to leave. If they are determined to not have a dev team and just capitalise on others' hard work then they should try for Paul instead, might be able to outbid Decathlon at least.
 
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I'm legitimately surprised that there was at least some fuel to the rumour about Torres and an offer there, though with UAE's financial backing he was never going to leave.
There has to be some limit to how many talents UAE can keep together in one team. Even a poorer team can offer a higher contract to a rider who would be 2nd or 3rd in their hierarchy than a richer team would be able to offer to the same rider if he was12th in their hierarchy and Ineos is not exactly what can be described as a poor team.
 
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There has to be some limit to how many talents UAE can keep together in one team. Even a poorer team can offer a higher contract to a rider who would be 2nd or 3rd in their hierarchy than a richer team would be able to offer to the same rider if he was12th in their hierarchy and Ineos is not exactly what can be described as a poor team.
Yes there was a bit of a honeymoon period but cracks are showing with Ayuso and to an extent Hirschi. Understandably young 18 years old guys will see more money in a week then they've ever had in their lives and it's hard to say no, but a few years down the line some will be a bit more ambitious. If I was Torres I wouldn't be signing the kind of bumper 5 year deal Del Toro got, give it 2 then see where you are, because if any of them have Tour ambitions it isn't happening with Pogacar.
 
Yes there was a bit of a honeymoon period but cracks are showing with Ayuso and to an extent Hirschi. Understandably young 18 years old guys will see more money in a week then they've ever had in their lives and it's hard to say no, but a few years down the line some will be a bit more ambitious. If I was Torres I wouldn't be signing the kind of bumper 5 year deal Del Toro got, give it 2 then see where you are, because if any of them have Tour ambitions it isn't happening with Pogacar.
I also think the fact riders develop well at UAE helps. It's not a kind of dead zone for talented riders, it's a professional environment and you do improve there.