Transfers and Rumours 2017 > 2018

[GenericBoonenFan]

Re: Re:

Wanty have Guillaume Martin and they did a great tour this year. I see them with pole position to the last WC spot.

Great Tour? They were nonexistent.

Wanty will have next to zero chance to get invited next year. Any half decent French Proconti squad will be ahead of them.

I've seen more Wanty tjen Cofidia or Bretagne mate
Who was represented in almost every breakaway?
Who's riders rode a long day in the break with no compatriots?
Wanty!

 

[MatParker117]

Re:

Great signings by Sky, both have the potential to be world class climbers. Something tells me David De la Cruz will fill the role between Nieve and Landa, not slaving in every race like Nieve and still have some freedom like Landa. Castro basically is Kiri, just shorter and very aerodynamic and therefore not shielding too much

Guaranteed decent Spanish TT Jersey as well.

 

[Lexman]

Re:

Vital Concept

Bryan Coquard
Yohan Bagot
Kris Boeckmans
Bert De Backer
Corentin Ermenault
Marc Fournier
Steven Lammertink
Johan Le Bon
Jérémy Lecroq
Lorenzo Manzin
Justin Mottier
Julien Morice
Quentin Pacher
Kévin Reza
Jonas Van Genechten
+ Five other riders

wondering if Boeckmans will dispute sprints again...

 

[May0maniac]

According to La Gazzetta Bahrain are interested in signing Valls and Dan Martin is pretty close to signing a deal with UAE.

 

[May0maniac]

Iuri Filosi to Delko
Source:
http://www.cicloweb.it/2017/08/17/iuri-filosi-delko-marseille/

 

[JRanton]

Re:

According to La Gazzetta Bahrain are interested in signing Valls and Dan Martin is pretty close to signing a deal with UAE.

Looks like Astana and Trek could be the big losers of the transfer period. I also expected Bahrain to be much more aggressive in the market.

 

[May0maniac]

Trek could pick up TJVG if he leaves BMC (ok, not really a great GC rider to replace Contador in the gts) and form what I've heard they are close to signing Conci, who could be the next Moscon.
I don't know if Astana will be big loosers, for the money that Aru is demanding they got Cort, Hirt and maybe they'll sign another young rider. Hirt/Kangert for the Giro and Fuglsang/Lopez for the Tour doesn't sound too bad.
Ciccone could be a factor, his contract is up and his big target is Lombardia, Astana and Bahrain will probably try to sign him.
According to La Gazzetta Bahrain are also in talks with Pozzovivo, but I don't know if he wants to become Nibali's superdomestique, staying at AG2R as their gc rider for the gts that Bardet isn't riding would probably be the better option.

 

[Nirvana]

With Nibali riding the Tour next year Bahrain needs a GC leader for the Giro.
I don't think they want to go to the Giro only to try to grab a top 15 with Visconti.

Anyway it's already a couple of years that italian media in the summer says that Pozzovivo will leave AG2R but in the end he extended in the fall everytime.

 

[Gigs_98]

Wouldn't it be smarter to sign a younger rider. I really like Pozzovivo, but if you have him and Nibali as gt leaders that basically means that in 2 years you will have to start looking for gt leaders all over again.

 

[TMP402]

Re: Re:

Vital Concept

Bryan Coquard
Yohan Bagot
Kris Boeckmans
Bert De Backer
Corentin Ermenault
Marc Fournier
Steven Lammertink
Johan Le Bon
Jérémy Lecroq
Lorenzo Manzin
Justin Mottier
Julien Morice
Quentin Pacher
Kévin Reza
Jonas Van Genechten
+ Five other riders

That's not a bad team at all.

Excuse me? :lol:

Well, with so little information about it other than Barguil and Coquard rumours, I was expecting Coquard and a bunch of Armée de terre guys. De Backer was pivotal to a monument win if I remember correctly, and Boeckmans and van Genechten have been winners in their own right.

 

[Lexman]

Vermote to Dimension Data to ride in the sprint train with Cavendish and leadership in the flemish races

http://sporza.be/cm/sporza/wielrennen/1.3049297

 

[Nirvana]

Wouldn't it be smarter to sign a younger rider. I really like Pozzovivo, but if you have him and Nibali as gt leaders that basically means that in 2 years you will have to start looking for gt leaders all over again.

This year they have Padun as stagiaire, if they'll sign him could be a good prospect in a couple of years.
In the last two years he showed great climbing abilities in espoirs races.

 

[Ricco']

Dan Martin and Rory Sutherland confirmed at UAE Emirates.

 

[Movitrain]

Wow, Sutherland too? Movistar reshaping half their roster appearently

 

[IndianCyclist]

Bryan Coquard

But I would have been the number two sprinter behind Fernando Gaviria. I suffered a lot when I wasn’t selected for the Tour this year, and in going to Quick-Step, I would have been almost certain not to do it. Next year, there is a start in La Baule, near my home, and that played a part too. We’re not sure of being there, but I have more chances of doing it…

I am Mystified by his reasoning. On one hand he says that he's not sure of selection in the QS team for TDF and then he goes to a WC team which is not sure of getting an invite at all.
Why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta , build a reputation and then go to the TDF?

 

[rick james]

Did trek even talk to Landa?

 

[yaco]

Re:

Bryan Coquard

But I would have been the number two sprinter behind Fernando Gaviria. I suffered a lot when I wasn’t selected for the Tour this year, and in going to Quick-Step, I would have been almost certain not to do it. Next year, there is a start in La Baule, near my home, and that played a part too. We’re not sure of being there, but I have more chances of doing it…

I am Mystified by his reasoning. On one hand he says that he's not sure of selection in the QS team for TDF and then he goes to a WC team which is not sure of getting an invite at all.
Why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta , build a reputation and then go to the TDF?

Coquard could have gone to a team like Cannondale and ridden the TDF.

 

[Anderis]

Re:

Bryan Coquard

But I would have been the number two sprinter behind Fernando Gaviria. I suffered a lot when I wasn’t selected for the Tour this year, and in going to Quick-Step, I would have been almost certain not to do it. Next year, there is a start in La Baule, near my home, and that played a part too. We’re not sure of being there, but I have more chances of doing it…

I am Mystified by his reasoning. On one hand he says that he's not sure of selection in the QS team for TDF and then he goes to a WC team which is not sure of getting an invite at all.
Why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta , build a reputation and then go to the TDF?

Did you even read what he said? He wants to do TdF next year already because of the start near his home, so there's the answer for your "why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta". And apparently he thinks his new team has a bigger chance of getting TdF invitation than he has of making TdF roster for Quick-Step. Makes sense all the way.

 

[Krokro]

Good move from Martin. UAE have ninja-built quite a very good team. They lack some results but if Aru (rumored only) joins them, they are gonna climb some rankings. Kristoff is a bit past his prime but still a good one for them.

 

[Anderis]

Re: Re:

Coquard could have gone to a team like Cannondale and ridden the TDF.

After this year Cannondale will undoubtedly want to back Uran for next year's TdF. No place for a sprinter, I'm afraid.

I guess there is a good reason behind Coquard's choice- no WT team made a good enough offer that would guarantee him the TdF spot.

 

[Ricco']

Re: Re:

Bryan Coquard

But I would have been the number two sprinter behind Fernando Gaviria. I suffered a lot when I wasn’t selected for the Tour this year, and in going to Quick-Step, I would have been almost certain not to do it. Next year, there is a start in La Baule, near my home, and that played a part too. We’re not sure of being there, but I have more chances of doing it…

I am Mystified by his reasoning. On one hand he says that he's not sure of selection in the QS team for TDF and then he goes to a WC team which is not sure of getting an invite at all.
Why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta , build a reputation and then go to the TDF?

Did you even read what he said? He wants to do TdF next year already because of the start near his home, so there's the answer for your "why not try to win stages in the Giro/Vuelta". And apparently he thinks his new team has a bigger chance of getting TdF invitation than he has of making TdF roster for Quick-Step. Makes sense all the way.

So why not stay in Direct Energie after all. The team is from the Vendée, where the grand depart will be, so it's sure of getting an invite, and Bernaudeau, if happy with him would certainly take him in the squad. Now he isn't on the World Tour again, he's in a 2nd tier team again, a new structure which needs time to set things in motion, and he is more unsure of going to the Tour even compared to a situation where he'd renewed with Direct Energie.

He's in a worse position, I have no doubt about that. And I'm not considering other WT teams who would want to have him in their ranks (certainly Quick Step were not the only ones).

Maybe he feels better if all things considered, the reason for not going to the Tour is because of his team not being invited and not because of the team wanting other riders. That way, maybe he feels that it isn't because of his quality as a rider.

 

[yaco]

Re: Re:

Coquard could have gone to a team like Cannondale and ridden the TDF.

After this year Cannondale will undoubtedly want to back Uran for next year's TdF. No place for a sprinter, I'm afraid.

I guess there is a good reason behind Coquard's choice- no WT team made a good enough offer that would guarantee him the TdF spot.

Disagree - Cannondale hardly surrounded Uran in the mountains and tend more than any other team to give their riders freedom - The only good thing about Coquard's move is it means Cofidis may miss out on a wild-card.

 

[TMP402]

Half of Quick-Step's TDF team have left already.

 

[Hexagon]

I'm a bit surprised Trek never made a move for Martin considering they have nobody for classics or GC leadership next year.

What about Aru is he headed for U.A.E too?

 

[DFA123]

I think that's a bit of a poor move by Martin. At least in terms of his racing ambitions (not so bad for his bank balance I imagine!). I think his time trialling will get worse now - nearly every rider's does when they leave Quickstep, and he's left pretty much the strongest Ardennes team, at a time when he arguably would have been favourite for LBL and FW next season, considering Valverde is going to be still feeling the affects of his injury.

I don't see what UAE offers that Quickstep couldn't (except money). If they sign Aru, he may well not even get leadership at the Tour. But, then again, Martin is one of these guys who lives in a tax haven, so we can kind of guess where his motivations lie.