With Coppel's season starting up and some huge finishes on his part, our team has finally become one of the more fun ones to watch in small flat tours. In these upcoming months we just need Coppel to keep what he's been doing up, and maybe some (a lot) more results from Lo Cicero, who does have a win, but we could use some more.
Note: June isn't included because we were literally useless and only races in 4 one-day races.
Overall, the last few months were pretty solid. Coppel with an absolute abundance of victories has really pulled us out of the relegation zone. After June, we were 23rd, and now with only a few races left in the season we're up in 17th which we can't be mad at.
With Coppel and Lo Cicero's season being over now, it falls on the responsibility of Vanerbiest and Palini to pull through some more points to help us just a bit more in the standings. Can't complain with finishing 17th if that's what happens, but we would love to end up higher like our PPRD shows.
Coppel is an absolute beast, which is not surprising, even with the decline next year he should definitely be able score well still. Also looks like you will still be in PCT next year so everything is swell!
whitejersey wrote:
Coppel is an absolute beast, which is not surprising, even with the decline next year he should definitely be able score well still. Also looks like you will still be in PCT next year so everything is swell!
Even with the decline he'll still be one of the best TTers in the PCT next year, so I'm really looking forward to see what team we can build behind him.
And Yes! definitely excited to stay in the PCT, was pretty worried about halfway through the season but it's looking good now!
Renewals was very bittersweet for us. Coppel getting a wage increase despite going down in stats hurt as we really underestimated what his demands would be. Losing Lo Cicero and Palini was a bit sad as they were core parts of the team. But dissapointing results for Palini and insane demands by Lo Cicero means that Vanderbiest will likely be our lead sprinter this season. On the other hand, many of our smaller and younger riders took pay cuts down to 50k, meaning they may provide transfer value.
In addition, it doesn't seem like we want to make that many changes. Given that we stayed alive last season and we have more money to spend to make the squad stronger, we're probably looking to just run it back.
That said, if we get an offer for 75% of what we paid last season for Coppel then we could definitely see ourselves moving him. Given that we expect that to be unlikely though, the only riders we're really looking to move are Aulas and Gaudin, as we don't really expect to have any sort of cobble presence this year.
Transfer season is finally starting! Going into this Carrefour - ESPN has a ton of cap and wages to spend, but the goal is definitely to become more of an all-around team. Here's some of the signings we made in that direction!
|From Free Agency|
Hassen Ben Nasser Signed from F/A
75.67 OVL | 33 Years Old | 60,000 Wage | Puncheur
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
68
68
78
65
75
69
69
64
69
76
75
67
65
Dropping into our lap is Hassen Ben Nasser on tiny wages. He probably won't be our top puncheur this year as he's declined from last year, but he'll be a great domestique and will have plenty of chances to do damage.
|Transfered In|
Nolf sprinting to a 4th place in the 2015 Ronde
Frederick Nolf From Carlsberg for 725,000
76.29 OVL | 32 Years Old | 140,000 Wage | Cobble Leader
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
74
63
66
64
77
72
69
80
63
71
75
60
64
And for the first time ever, we finally have a good cobbles leader. Good might be understating it as he actually has the 16th highest COB stat in the Man-Game. Hoping for big things out of Nolf even if he's going to regress with his stats next year.
|Swap Deals|
Adrien Petit taking his sole victory in Carrefour - ESPN colors
Juan Ernesto Chamorro From Festina for 200,000 + Petit
75.72 OVL | 28 Years Old | 180,000 Wage | Climber
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Leaving is fan-favorite Adrien Petit, but in exchange we've brought in a good climber, which we desperately needed last year. Chamorro is only 28 and has amazing backup stats, expect him to be constantly attacking for us this season.
Losing Petit definitely hits hard. He was a great leadout and even had some great results himself last season. Hopefully there's a future where we can bring him back, as his cobble/sprint combination is always one that's been loved here.
Antoine Duchesne From Repsol for 30,000 + Castroviejo
74.69 OVL | 28 Years Old | 80,000 Wage | Puncheur
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
70
67
77
68
73
72
67
56
69
79
71
51
68
Duchesne was a no-brainer when we got the offer. Fuchesne is young, on low wages, and has great stats to be an attacking puncheur who can steal points. The other way we sent a 32-year old Castroviejo and just 30k. Exciting to see what this canadian can do along side of Ben Nasser
|Loaned In|
Amine Galdoune From EA Vesuvio on split wages
68.75 OVL | 23 Years Old | 50,000 Wage | Talent
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
69
60
63
64
68
66
62
57
72
72
65
64
66
Galdoune is young and has a ton of talent! excited to see what he can do in his limited race days! Bringing him in frees up some wage space that we'll be dropping on some big riders!
|Loaned Out|
Thanawut Sanikwathi To EA Vesuvio on split wages
72.86 | 26 Years Old | 50,000 Wage | Talent
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
70
58
66
65
68
66
74
71
76
76
66
72
68
Spoiler
When Maxed:
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
72
58
66
65
70
67
75
72
78
78
66
72
68
Sanikwathi comes from the same Adrien Petit mold as cobbled sprinter. When he's maxed though, he will definitely be a very good leadout man, while getting a lot of chances in flat cobbled races.
Jernej Svab To Repsol - Netflix on split wages
73.15 | 24 Years Old | 60,000 Wage | Talent
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
70
69
74
57
70
71
68
66
67
76
66
68
55
Spoiler
When Maxed:
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
70
71
76
57
70
72
69
66
67
78
68
68
55
After being on loan to Desigual, and still having never riden a single race in the Carrefour - ESPN jersey, Svab goes back out on loan to get maxed out. He could have done that here, but management wanted to send him out for some more PT experience. Count on him being a great rider for us when he returns
|Current Team Roster|
Name
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
Jerome Coppel
76
65
75
82
77
77
72
53
64
72
73
63
82
Romain Vanderbiest
74
64
64
67
74
69
81
58
82
77
55
65
74
Frederik Nolf
74
63
66
64
77
72
69
80
63
71
75
60
64
Juan Chamorro
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Hassen Ben Nasser
68
68
78
65
75
69
69
64
69
76
75
67
65
Antoine Duchesne
70
67
77
68
73
72
67
56
69
79
71
51
68
Kevin Feiereisen
74
62
68
58
73
68
75
63
77
78
61
68
69
Wen Hao Li
75
53
61
78
73
68
71
50
75
75
64
64
78
Patrick Bercz
72
62
70
60
73
68
75
66
76
77
67
66
60
Daniel Schorn
76
56
61
69
67
65
77
62
77
77
66
65
72
Damien Gaudin
73
50
67
66
75
67
69
76
56
69
71
57
66
Alexandre Aulas
72
54
66
60
73
65
67
72
73
70
62
79
60
Aleksa Crncervic
66
72
67
69
67
67
71
64
61
68
66
75
68
Jan Drago Petelin
68
72
68
62
69
68
67
50
54
69
66
60
61
Alan Banaszek
68
61
62
61
67
68
63
57
71
75
65
67
68
Amine Galdoune
69
60
63
64
68
66
62
57
72
72
65
64
66
Oh yeah, we forgot to mention something actually. We still have a ton of wage space, probably enough wage space to bring in very good riders on multiple terrains. So stay tuned
Chamorro is a really really cool climber. Making me a little nervous for Bennett!
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
Our transfer season is really starting to wrap up, we're only expecting 2 or 3 signings which will be announced tomorrow, but today we've signed a veteran puncheur who should do great for us!
|From Free Agency|
a younger Klemme taking the victory at Giro dell'Emelia
Domenik Klemme
75.09 OVL | 33 Years Old | 100,000 Wage | Puncheur
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
70
73
79
66
73
69
71
53
65
65
58
61
66
Klemme is set to be a good veteran leader for our team while most likely being the top domestique for whomever becomes our hill leader. His lack of Accell is really highlighed as he's declined a bit, but that ability in the hills and mountains is so valuable for us.
Goals
Goal #1:WIN Post Danmark Rundt
Spoiler
Goal #2:Top 5 Nakhon Ratchasima Trophy
Spoiler
Goal #3:Top 5 Barbados Cycling Festival
Spoiler
Goal #4:10 Stage Wins
Goal #5:Top 15 PCT Standings
We feel pretty good about 4 of our goals. Post Danmark Rundt is a race tailor-made for Coppel with a timetrial and a hill stage. Nakhon Ratchasima is a race we won last year with Lo Cicero, and with its flat terrain and our strong sprint train we feel good about Vanderbiest there. Just a bit worried about Barbados as Lo Cicero struggled there last year; however, he had a deprived version of our typically strong train, so hopefully he can bounce back.
For the team goals, we had 19 victories last year, so 10 should be easily doable. While top 15 should be in reach merely through retaining Coppel and strengthening like we have already.
|Current Team Roster|
Name
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
Jerome Coppel
76
65
75
82
77
77
72
53
64
72
73
63
82
Romain Vanderbiest
74
64
64
67
74
69
81
58
82
77
55
65
74
Frederik Nolf
74
63
66
64
77
72
69
80
63
71
75
60
64
Juan Chamorro
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Hassen Ben Nasser
68
68
78
65
75
69
69
64
69
76
75
67
65
Domenik Klemme
70
73
79
66
73
69
71
53
65
65
58
61
66
Antoine Duchesne
70
67
77
68
73
72
67
56
69
79
71
51
68
Kevin Feiereisen
74
62
68
58
73
68
75
63
77
78
61
68
69
Wen Hao Li
75
53
61
78
73
68
71
50
75
75
64
64
78
Patrick Bercz
72
62
70
60
73
68
75
66
76
77
67
66
60
Daniel Schorn
76
56
61
69
67
65
77
62
77
77
66
65
72
Damien Gaudin
73
50
67
66
75
67
69
76
56
69
71
57
66
Alexandre Aulas
72
54
66
60
73
65
67
72
73
70
62
79
60
Aleksa Crncervic
66
72
67
69
67
67
71
64
61
68
66
75
68
Jan Drago Petelin
68
72
68
62
69
68
67
50
54
69
66
60
61
Alan Banaszek
68
61
62
61
67
68
63
57
71
75
65
67
68
Amine Galdoune
69
60
63
64
68
66
62
57
72
72
65
64
66
But as always, more big signings on the way of course!
Just a smaller transfer update for today with a new loanee who brought us in a lot of money as well as a new climber!
|Transfered in|
Petr Ignatenko From Tinkoff for 50,000
73.76 OVL | 32 Years Old | 50,000 Wage | Climber
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
69
77
73
71
74
70
74
52
53
63
55
63
71
We were looking for another cheap climber to help out Chamorro, and here we got him. With 77 MTN and 71 TT, Ignatenko should be solid in shorter tours and should be a steal at 50k.
|Loaned in|
German Nicolas Tivani 150k for us to pay wages
71.14 OVL | 24 Years Old | 50,000 Wage | Talent
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
68
63
65
62
67
76
68
56
74
76
72
67
70
We didn't plan to take another loan, but an offer from Azteca to take Tivani on loan for a season in exchange for a fee of 150k was one we couldn't pass up. Tivani should help out our sprint train while learning a lot from the Vanderbiest types.
|Current Team Roster|
Name
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
Jerome Coppel
76
65
75
82
77
77
72
53
64
72
73
63
82
Romain Vanderbiest
74
64
64
67
74
69
81
58
82
77
55
65
74
Frederik Nolf
74
63
66
64
77
72
69
80
63
71
75
60
64
Juan Chamorro
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Hassen Ben Nasser
68
68
78
65
75
69
69
64
69
76
75
67
65
Domenik Klemme
70
73
79
66
73
69
71
53
65
65
58
61
66
Antoine Duchesne
70
67
77
68
73
72
67
56
69
79
71
51
68
Kevin Feiereisen
74
62
68
58
73
68
75
63
77
78
61
68
69
Wen Hao Li
75
53
61
78
73
68
71
50
75
75
64
64
78
Petr Ignatenko
69
77
73
71
74
70
74
52
53
63
55
63
71
Patrick Bercz
72
62
70
60
73
68
75
66
76
77
67
66
60
Daniel Schorn
76
56
61
69
67
65
77
62
77
77
66
65
72
Damien Gaudin
73
50
67
66
75
67
69
76
56
69
71
57
66
German N. Tivani
68
63
65
62
67
76
68
56
74
76
72
67
70
Alexandre Aulas
72
54
66
60
73
65
67
72
73
70
62
79
60
Aleksa Crncervic
66
72
67
69
67
67
71
64
61
68
66
75
68
Jan Drago Petelin
68
72
68
62
69
68
67
50
54
69
66
60
61
Alan Banaszek
68
61
62
61
67
68
63
57
71
75
65
67
68
Amine Galdoune
69
60
63
64
68
66
62
57
72
72
65
64
66
The team really looks to be coming together somewhat, our sprint train still looks very solid while having okay points scorers in the climbs and hills. 2 or 3 more signings should be announced tomorrow and they should be some big ones.
Just a short update with a big punchuer joining our ranks. Our next and final update should have our last rider signed and the whole team confirmed.
|From Free Agency|
Xavier Quevedo
76.03 OVL | 28 Years Old | 140,000 Wage | Puncheur
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
69
71
78
65
72
72
73
56
65
75
69
72
65
Quevedo is our second to last signing of this transfer season, and he will most likely be the true leader for our hills group. He can survive the shorter attacking hills, while also having a solid mountain ability. At 140k we're definitely happy with the crown jewl of our hill core.
Eden95 wrote:
Really like the depth you have in your team! Ben Nasser, Klemme and Quevedo all brought in in one window for decent enough wages is a job well done
Thanks! It's a pretty stark change from us normally, but an all-around team for once is definitely welcomed
Transfer season is now closed, and we have our final 2 moves of the silly season, although losing Aulas will hurt our hearts, the man we've brought in is sure to be a big help.
|Sacked|
Alexandre Aulas
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
72
54
66
60
73
65
67
72
73
70
62
79
60
Aulas has been with us since the creation of our team, and although he's by far the longest tenured rider, he was also our worst non-talent. Moving him meant more talent so we had to, as much as it hurt a bit.
|From Free Agency|
Christophe Laporte
74.47 OVL | 27 Years Old | 185,000 Wage | Cobbler
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
73
62
73
62
72
74
74
75
72
73
67
64
65
Bringing in Laporte was a priority after he was sacked, especially after we were outbid on Yoeri Havik. Luckily Laporte fits our team perfectly with his all-around ability and should be a great helper for Nolf, while also getting his own chances.
|FINAL Team Roster|
Name
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
Jerome Coppel
76
65
75
82
77
77
72
53
64
72
73
63
82
Romain Vanderbiest
74
64
64
67
74
69
81
58
82
77
55
65
74
Frederik Nolf
74
63
66
64
77
72
69
80
63
71
75
60
64
Xavier Quevedo
69
71
78
65
72
72
73
56
65
75
69
72
65
Juan Chamorro
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Hassen Ben Nasser
68
68
78
65
75
69
69
64
69
76
75
67
65
Domenik Klemme
70
73
79
66
73
69
71
53
65
65
58
61
66
Antoine Duchesne
70
67
77
68
73
72
67
56
69
79
71
51
68
Christophe Laporte
73
62
73
62
72
74
74
75
72
73
67
64
65
Kevin Feiereisen
74
62
68
58
73
68
75
63
77
78
61
68
69
Wen Hao Li
75
53
61
78
73
68
71
50
75
75
64
64
78
Petr Ignatenko
69
77
73
71
74
70
74
52
53
63
55
63
71
Patrick Bercz
72
62
70
60
73
68
75
66
76
77
67
66
60
Daniel Schorn
76
56
61
69
67
65
77
62
77
77
66
65
72
Damien Gaudin
73
50
67
66
75
67
69
76
56
69
71
57
66
German N. Tivani
68
63
65
62
67
76
68
56
74
76
72
67
70
Aleksa Crncervic
66
72
67
69
67
67
71
64
61
68
66
75
68
Jan Drago Petelin
68
72
68
62
69
68
67
50
54
69
66
60
61
Alan Banaszek
68
61
62
61
67
68
63
57
71
75
65
67
68
Amine Galdoune
69
60
63
64
68
66
62
57
72
72
65
64
66
With the transfer season now closed, we're quite happy with the team we've constructed. We're definitely missing some stronger leaders, but we've become a more all-around team, which is something we've lacked.
Not to get y'all too excited, but the last 2 times we've had a genuine all-around team without having certain terrains completely ignored was the last 2 times we promoted from the CT, hopefully this change can lead to good results for us!
After coming back down to the CT, we've been forced to make some moves to really change the composition of our team from having leaders like Jerome Coppel to becoming a more all-around team.
|Jakub Novak Returns|
Novak riding to the GC victory in Stage 4 of the 2015 USA Pro Cycling Challenge.
Alan Banasezk
->
Repsol - Netflix
$350,000
->
Repsol - Netflix
Jakub Novak
->
Carrrefour - ESPN
Jakub Novak returns after 4 years away from the team. In our second season Novak led us to promotion with huge tour performances all around, which we he hope he can repeat even to a lesser extent this season.
|Tsatevich Arrives as Svab Leaves|
Jernej Svab
->
Desigual
$500,000
->
Desigual
Alexey Tsatevich
->
Carrrefour - ESPN
Tsatevich arrives to act as one of the best CT domestiques in the cobbles and hills. A great sprinter in his own right as well, Tsatevich will hope to pair with Nolf to dominate the cobbles. Losing Svab is tough after finally maxing him out, but the team has no time to waste and needed to get Tsatevich in despite losing the youth.
|Duchesne out in Needed Salary Shed|
Antoine Duchesne
->
Nordstrom - CA Technologies
$75,000
->
Carrefour - ESPN
After getting Duchesne for so little last year, we unfortunately had to cut him lose here after his wages were too high for our CT budget.
|Gyung Gu Jang in on Rider Swap|
Jan Drago Petelin
->
King Power
Gyung Gu Jang
->
Carrefour - ESPN
Longtime talent Petelin leaves after a great offer for Jang appeared. Unfortunate to see Petelin not max out with us here, but aquiring a climber of Jang's caliber for no fee was a no-brainer.
|Laporte out as two Specialists Arrive|
Christophe Laporte
->
Generali
$150,000
->
Generali
Jan Ghyselinck
->
Carrefour - ESPN
Jakub Skala
->
Carrefour - ESPN
For a small fee and Laporte, we get two riders on 50k wages who can provide similar aid to Laporte. Laporte was largely wasted last season with such a deep cobbles line-up and with high wages, getting a great time-trialist in Ghyselinck and a cobbler in Skala was a deal that we couldn't pass up.
|Current Team Composition|
Name
FL
MO
HI
TT
STA
RES
REC
COB
SP
ACC
FI
DH
PRL
Gyung Gu Jang
67
76
76
62
72
70
70
54
66
74
73
56
62
Jakub Novak
70
77
73
76
75
73
75
60
64
65
64
61
76
Juan Chamorro
66
78
75
65
72
76
70
51
66
74
78
74
64
Frederik Nolf
73
62
65
63
76
71
68
79
62
70
74
59
63
Alexey Tsatevich
74
62
77
60
74
73
70
75
75
75
66
69
64
Xavier Quevedo
69
71
78
65
72
72
73
56
65
75
69
72
65
Thanawut Sanikwathi
72
58
66
65
70
67
75
72
78
78
66
72
68
Patrick Bercz
72
62
70
60
73
68
75
66
76
77
67
66
60
Wen Hao Li
75
53
61
78
73
68
71
50
75
75
64
64
78
Jan Ghyselinck
74
61
68
77
75
77
73
61
64
68
74
61
77
Jakub Skala
74
56
71
56
70
72
65
74
66
71
72
74
69
* Note: Aleksa Crncevic has left on loan to cycleYorkshire.
We've clearly gone away from our last 2 promotion seasons' tactic of having 3 hardcore leaders. This season we're trying to really capitalize on the cobbles through Tsatevich, Sanikwathi and Nolf as we pick up points in the Mountains, Hills and Time Trials through our background riders. A risky strategy but a risk we hope pays off.
Hassen Ben Nasser
Frederick Nolf
Juan Ernesto Chamorro
Antoine Duchesne
Amine Galdoune
Thanawut Sanikwathi
Jernej Svab
Domenik Klemme
Petr Ignatenko
German Nicolas Tivani
Xavier Quevedo
Alexandre Aulas
