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Teams & Riders Transfers and Rumours 2019 > 2020

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not really, on paper maybe, but CCC in 2015 basically just had Grega Bela for a couple of Top 15s and Gazprom was rescued by Foliforov going ballistic the year after.

If Epowers really can get someone like Brambilla (or Pozzovivo) and a somewhat decent sprinter (which should be no problem, there are enough of those on the market - Modolo, Pasqualon, Battaglin, Lobato, Sbaragli, Guardini...), they are at least on level with this.

That’s much too generous to this collection of semi pros. Look down that list. There are about three guys with significant pro experience and it isn’t as if the Conti guys are big espoir successes.

2015 CCC also had Rebellin on their books but (a) he was five years younger than he will be in 2020 and (b) he wasn’t welcome at the Giro as he presumably still isn’t. More relevantly they had Szmyd, Paterski, Bole, a young Jan Hirt and crucially pretty much everyone on their books was a reasonably experienced pro. They weren’t a bunch of complete randoms rounded up from Colpack and whatever Pannon Cycling Team is.

It’s not even as if they are trying to get into the Vuelta and their team would get most of a season in the pro ranks first. We are talking about sending a load of guys straight from Italian or Central European .2s to the Giro in support of Darwin Atapuma?

CCC and Rusvelo were absolutely dodgy selections but if this lot get in, the Italian PCT teams will spontaneously combust.
 
I don't get why people say CCC or Gazprom were bad selections- they didn't do worse than what some of the Italian teams usually do in the Giro (or Cofidis at TdF) and had riders who were absolutely on fire and among the best PCT performers that year- Paterski won a Catalunya stage, Tour of Croatia, was 2nd in Volta Limburg Classic and top10 in Brabantse Pijl and Amstel Gold Race in the spring prior to 2015 Giro. Firsanov won Settimana Coppi e Bartali, Giro dell'Appennino and was 4th in Trentino in the spring priot to 2016 Giro. They were two outstanding PCT riders deserving a chance to show themselves in a GT as much if not more than any rider of some local PCT teams that often get invited.
 
What that team needs is some Kreder or several Kreders and some Australian guys straight from the Asiatic race calendar. Maybe a really really tall guy as well.

Lol still whining and yapping about Aquablue? Nine of that team’s initial 16 riders had WT experience and three of the remnant had been PCT pros. Only four were espoirs or semi pros. In their second year the only riders on their team who hadn’t at least a year of pro riding under their belts were Eddie Dunbar and Casper Pedersen, two of the best espoirs of the previous season and now highly regarded young WT riders. The more common complaint about them at the time was that they had too many solid but unremarkable pros and not enough in the way of unknowns. Of course Aquablue didn’t get a Giro invite and were never seriously considered for one.

By contrast this outfit has three pro riders signed, the best of them a 52 year old clinic resident who has been long forbidden from riding the Giro anyway. Almost nobody on this team has ever participated in even the most minor WT race before and you think they are a reasonable Giro wildcard?

That’s not to say that there shouldn’t be a Hungarian PCT team. There are guys like Pelikan (who they’ve signed) and Valter (who they haven’t) who look like decent pro prospects. It’s just that putting what is essentially a Conti team in terms of background and experience directly into the Giro is absurd and can only be the result of pay to play antics.
 
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There's only two wildcards with Cofidis and Arkea moving up remember, would they get in ahead of the Italian teams?

Arkea doesn't meet the requirements to move up. So it's not a guarentee they will. Cofidis is very close if they don't fully meet the requirements so it's much more likely they will move up. There is nothing that says they have to allow 2 Pro Conti teams to move up, esp if they don't meet the requirements.
 
Pfingsten completes Jumbo-Visma roster according to De Telegraaf & Wielerfits.

Chernetskiy and Sthrakov complete Gazprom-Rusvelo roster. They've made some interesting signings with three russian quality riders and good italian PCT cyclists but lose their leader (Vlasov) and a couple of good riders too (Shilov and Arslanov, the latter surprisingly retiring)
 
DQS signs U23 Ian Garrison, timetrial specialist...


Last year everyone thought Asgreen was "just a time trialer" ...
 
Vanendert (Jelle) leaves Lotto Soudal for Wallonie Bruxelles
And
Julien Vermote from Dimension to Cofidis
 
Asgreen is a timetrial specialist, though. He's just got a few more tricks up his sleeves.
Maybe Garrison can find a few as well.

Bit of a difference between timetrial specialist and just a time trialer. Dumoulin is a timetrial specialist, I wouldn't call him just a time trialer.

I dont know, to me the word "specialist" suggests a one trick pony. Like he is special in that one aspect but not much more. But maybe that is just me.
 
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