Teams & Riders Transfers and Rumours 2019 > 2020

[Sestriere]

Hmm, although most of what's written above seems to be speculation at this point, I would've thought Bennett and BORA would deal more respectfully with each other. They have basically been on the same path for the last six years. Starting off in 2014, both young and ambitious, up to 2019 where both, team and rider, are world class. Noone would be where they are now without the other. It would be kind of sad if they were to split on bad terms.
Also, I think Bennett wasn't treated as poorly by the team, and in fact wasn't as unhappy with his situation as many english speaking commentators wanted us to believe for the last year or so. But that's just my impression.

 

[JRanton]

Starting to get concerned for Ineos in the transfer market this year.

Poels, De La Cruz, Rosa, Elissonde, Halvorsen and Basso moving on.

But only Carapaz and Pidcock coming?

Some interesting names still available:

Pello Bilbao
Esteban Chaves
Ruben Fernandez
Louis Meintjes
Neilson Powless
Nathan Haas
Matteo Fabbro
Fabio Felline
Niklas Eg

Bilbao is the above mentioned as is Oscar Rodriguez, Aranburu, Izaguirre brothers, Herrera brothers, Carapaz, Bernal, Sosa, Nairo, Rigo.

Kwiatkowski too.

 

[b.broadhurst]

Kwiatkowski too.

He has a contract for 2020?

 

[ice&fire]

Starting to get concerned for Ineos in the transfer market this year.

Poels, De La Cruz, Rosa, Elissonde, Halvorsen and Basso moving on.

But only Carapaz and Pidcock coming?

Some interesting names still available:

Pello Bilbao
Esteban Chaves
Ruben Fernandez
Louis Meintjes
Neilson Powless
Nathan Haas
Matteo Fabbro
Fabio Felline
Niklas Eg

I haven't followed closely this thread on a daily basis and I don't know why you consider Bilbao as available. He was announced to join Landa at Bahrain earlier this month:

Deia

Deia, Noticias de Deia, Noticias de Bizkaia

www.deia.eus

 

[Naico]

As for Acquadro ..well he may get his clients top dollar but for how long
He is making it very hard for other teams to hang on their talent or get talent as he inflates the market

And you can be sure that any Spanish rider signed with him who want to ride with Movistar will have a fight on their hands as he will have them tied up so tightly
.As an agent he will make money no matter what

This also makes it easier for an Ineos or Astana to low ball rider and agent, knowing that a part of the market is excluded.

 

[Mayomaniac]

Vlasov to Astana has been confirmed.
https://www.tuttobiciweb.it/article/2019/08/27/1566918551/astana-gazprom-alexander-vlasov
It's their only good new signing besides the neopros so far, what is going on with them?
They have lost many domestiques and important riders for the cobbled classics. Ion and Gorka only ride for Ion and Gorka, so there aren't many good climbing domestiques left. They need to resign Lulu and Kudus and they should try to get someone like Oscar Rodriguez.
Birdsong isn't getting younger and MAL still doesn't want to ride the Tour, they need some new Impulses.

 

[dusty red roads]

How does the rider/agent contract work? How many years are these contracts usually for? Sounds like they're not very short term - from what I see here it sounds like it's not easy to change agents, where in situations like these a rider might want to if they can't join a team due to their agent.

Hmmm, maybe like parts of the music industry...

 

[Leinster]

No I dont think its money .Most teams would pay for him ..Bora definitely want to keep him by hook or by crook..My guess is there are using some legal clause not to release him

So why do that ...well as Brian Smith said ...they do not want him to join the competition next year even if they get a disgruntled employee

The world of cycling contracts and agents is a cut throat business

Most teams would pay, yes, but Quickstep (assuming that’s who he’s talking to) have seemed to keep a tight rein on their salaries; Alaphilippe and Evenepoel are their marquee names, and Viviani has just left them to get more money from Cofidis.

So if Bennett is due a 6 year loyalty bonus, or something, and Bora are withholding it, I can’t see DQS making up the shortfall. Lefevere would probably argue (rightly or wrongly) that he could get the same results with any sprinter as he would with Bennett, so he holds the power to walk away.

I can’t see it just being Bora trying to avoid competition. Even if they wanted to, I doubt they would have much of a leg to stand on if they tried it.

 

[Koronin]

As for Acquadro ..well he may get his clients top dollar but for how long
He is making it very hard for other teams to hang on their talent or get talent as he inflates the market

And you can be sure that any Spanish rider signed with him who want to ride with Movistar will have a fight on their hands as he will have them tied up so tightly
.As an agent he will make money no matter what

It appears that Movistar has stated they will not even consider talking to let alone signing any rider that Acquadro has. So if a Spanish speaking rider wants to sign with Movistar they need to find a different agent. This most likely means the end of him signing new young Spaniards.

Over here you here of athletes (NFL, MLB, NBA,NHL) firing their agent every couple of years. Don't know about in Europe and how it is with cycling, but over here it appears to be fairly easy for an athlete to fire an agent. Over here athletes are listed as Independent Contractors not employees so that helps to make it easier to fire agents as well as for teams to let players go.

 

[Koronin]

How does the rider/agent contract work? How many years are these contracts usually for? Sounds like they're not very short term - from what I see here it sounds like it's not easy to change agents, where in situations like these a rider might want to if they can't join a team due to their agent.

Hmmm, maybe like parts of the music industry...

It seems very different to how it works in the US for the major sports here where players are always changing agents or firms to represent them.

 

[Stilletto]

Vlasov to Astana has been confirmed.
https://www.tuttobiciweb.it/article/2019/08/27/1566918551/astana-gazprom-alexander-vlasov
It's their only good new signing besides the neopros so far, what is going on with them?
They have lost many domestiques and important riders for the cobbled classics. Ion and Gorka only ride for Ion and Gorka, so there aren't many good climbing domestiques left. They need to resign Lulu and Kudus and they should try to get someone like Oscar Rodriguez.
Birdsong isn't getting younger and MAL still doesn't want to ride the Tour, they need some new Impulses.

Alex Aranburu ex Caja Rural is heavily linked already....

Cyclisme. Tour Down Under - Sam Welsford : «Beaucoup de nervosité dans le peloton»

Sam Welsford n'a pas fait la passe de trois ce jeudi sur la troisième étape du Santos Tour Down Under. Pour la première étape v&eacu

www.cyclismactu.net

So is
Oscar Rodriguez ex Euskadi

Pretty decent Bilbao and Cort replacements ?

 

[Mayomaniac]

Alex Aranburu ex Caja Rural is heavily linked already....

Cyclisme. Tour Down Under - Sam Welsford : «Beaucoup de nervosité dans le peloton»

Sam Welsford n'a pas fait la passe de trois ce jeudi sur la troisième étape du Santos Tour Down Under. Pour la première étape v&eacu

www.cyclismactu.net

So is
Oscar Rodriguez ex Euskadi

Pretty decent Bilbao and Cort replacements ?

Yes, but they also lost Hirt, Bilbao, Cataldo, Zeits, Villella and Ballerini, so it's not just about those 2.

 

[Stilletto]

Yes, but they also lost Hirt, Bilbao, Cataldo, Zeits, Villella and Ballerini, so it's not just about those 2.
[/QUOTE]

Seems to a lot boils down to only giving 1 year contracts perhaps ? Zeits renewed last year for a year and signs a 2 year deal with Mitchelton for next year.
Same for Cataldo, Villela and Hirt
Perhaps helpers are only getting 1 year deals ?
I suspect Lulu, Kudus, Gruzdev and Houle renewed for a year.
Still pick up a couple free helpers and look younger and hungrier lol

 

[Stilletto]

Read somewhere De La Cruz to cofidis ?

Where are the outings for Ineos going ?
Only heard above and Poels for Sunweb or Bahrain

 

[Stilletto]

Nippo and Delko marriage is completed wonder which Japanese riders move to France then ?

 

[Koronin]

Read somewhere De La Cruz to cofidis ?

Where are the outings for Ineos going ?
Only heard above and Poels for Sunweb or Bahrain

At this point that likely depends on who their agent is as to where they are going.

 

[42x16ss]

Starting to get concerned for Ineos in the transfer market this year.

Poels, De La Cruz, Rosa, Elissonde, Halvorsen and Basso moving on.

But only Carapaz and Pidcock coming?

Some interesting names still available:

Pello Bilbao
Esteban Chaves
Ruben Fernandez
Louis Meintjes
Neilson Powless
Nathan Haas
Matteo Fabbro
Fabio Felline
Niklas Eg

Only way Chaves leaves MTS is if Matt White does something stupid to annoy him or Neil Stephens is given an open chequebook to bring him to UAE.

The team changed his whole family's life, he's not going anywhere.

 

[JoeD1997]

Not so much concrete rumours, but Torjus Sleen, man of the race at l'Avenir, tweeted that after helping friend and teammate Tobias Foss to win overall, he hopes it won't be their last GC win together. So perhaps Sleen is Jumbo-Visma bound too, just like Foss?

https://twitter.com/x/status/1166369875679424512

View: https://twitter.com/TorjusSleen/status/1166369875679424512


In a recent CN article, Axel Merckx said he had a third rider headed to the WT. With Bjerg and Almeida already being confirmed, I'd take a guess the third rider is either Ian Garrison or Jonny Brown. Garrison has had a good year, taking 2nd in Triptyque and winning the elite US ITT title. Brown was a former elite US RR champ and his brother Nate is on EF. I'd not be shocked if whichever one is going pro winds up at EF. http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/hagens-berman-axeon-confirm-return-to-continental-level-for-2020/

 

[Anderis]

Jonny Brown really doesn't have any results to back up his US RR title that would indicate he will be a WT level rider. Garrison is better but still not a clear WT prospect IMO. Despite very young age, Vermaerke looks like someone who could be ready to deliver WT-worthy performances in 2020 already but I'm not betting it's him who actually goes to WT because of his age.

 

[dusty red roads]

It seems very different to how it works in the US for the major sports here where players are always changing agents or firms to represent them.

IMHO that's how it should be. Like with riders changing teams. Of course if they're happy to keep the same agent that's totally fine, but they shouldn't ever find themselves stuck in a bind that they're not happy with.

 

[Alex47]

Vlasov to Astana has been confirmed.
https://www.tuttobiciweb.it/article/2019/08/27/1566918551/astana-gazprom-alexander-vlasov
It's their only good new signing besides the neopros so far, what is going on with them?
They have lost many domestiques and important riders for the cobbled classics. Ion and Gorka only ride for Ion and Gorka, so there aren't many good climbing domestiques left. They need to resign Lulu and Kudus and they should try to get someone like Oscar Rodriguez.
Birdsong isn't getting younger and MAL still doesn't want to ride the Tour, they need some new Impulses.

We have to wait the new riders...

Fot the moment

Zeits out, Pronskiy in
Bilbao out, Aranburu in (even if it's not official yet)
Hirt out, Vlasov in
Cataldo out, Tejada in
Ballerini out, Martinelli in
Cort out ?
Villella out ?

Hirt wanted some more space, Bilbao too (and more money). Astana can't allow them this.
Cataldo is 34 years old, so no 2 years deal.
Villella was not good in Astana during his contrat so no contract extension.
Ballerini is going to DQS, the best team for classics. Nothing to do.
The two only riders that Astana can regret are Cort and Zeits.
Cort wanted to be in an english speaking team and Zeits wanted at 33 years old to discover something new.

 

[Koronin]

After everything that has gone on with the transfer market this year (well let's date this back to the Sosa debacle), I'll stick with preferring how free agency (players, agency, contract negotiations, even holdouts) work with US based sports. I swear it's much less complicated. Heck even some of the multi-team trades (at the trade deadline) are less complicated than some of this stuff.

 

[SafeBet]

After everything that has gone on with the transfer market this year (well let's date this back to the Sosa debacle), I'll stick with preferring how free agency (players, agency, contract negotiations, even holdouts) work with US based sports. I swear it's much less complicated. Heck even some of the multi-team trades (at the trade deadline) are less complicated than some of this stuff.

I don't mind the US pro sports free agency system but claiming it's less complicated than this seems a little far fetched.

Cycling free agency is pretty straight forward. You might have the occasional agent/team pulling some *** like Acquadro but overall it's way easier: no salary cap, no compensatory picks, no tags, no dead money, etc etc.

 

[Salvarani]

American sport less complicated?

Ive heard it all

 

[TMP402]

Well, I think Trentin and Van Avermaet can be a fantastic duo.

And let's be honest: GVA is 34.

If you look at his results, he established himself as top tier in 2014-15 and then had what will probably be seen as his peak in 2016-17. From 2018 onwards his career has not been as hot. 2017: 2nd in RVV and 1st in Paris-Roubaix. 2018: 5th and 4th. 2019: 10th and 12th. Of course he should still be a threat, but that's why the team needs two cards with Trentin. GVA can probably not be relied upon as a big winner any more - he has only two wins this year so far, stages of Valenciana and Yorkshire.