The Slovenian government financed Adria Mobil Cycling team hit the dizzy heights of professional cycling earlier this month when it was announced that their 2008 season would be undertaken in the ranks of the Pro Tour teams.
Government officials were clearly overjoyed at this announcement, and were quick to praise Simon Spilak's performance during the 2007 season. So good were his performances that pro tour team Lampre, amongst others, were rumoured to have been interested in signing the youngster. Apparantly, after a quick negotiation with Adria's manager and the sponsors, more funds were released to support the development of this talented cyclist.
When it was known that Adria Mobil would be reaching the 2 year goal, one year earlier than predicted, more funds were made available for new signings. Whilst the funds for home talent Spilak were easy to come by, by contrast the funds for new signings of riders outside the locality of the country were harder to secure. A couple of new sponsors, such as Fiat, Butan Plin (energy provider) and Riko Eco-Homes came onboard at the last minute to help rally behind Slovenian's best sportsmen. As the increase in funds allowed the managerial staff to look elsewhere for talent, the squads numbers increased to the maximum size allowed by the UCI. Joining the squad for 2008, Roman Kreuziger from our Czech neighbours, would give the team undoubted depth. Other signings included...
When talking to the Adria managerial staff, we couldn't help but enquire as to their aims for the year. The staff were keeping most of the information under wraps before talking to the squad about their season goals as well, but they were happy to tell us that the Tour de France would be a focal point of the season. They felt that the pressure was on the most for a good performance in the Tour, as it is clearly the highest point of cycling in the world, and the hardest place to achieve greatness. When asked to put a number, or placing, on the expectation, the number 10 came out. When scanning the team sheet, a top ten result in the hardest 3 week grand tour in the world would definately be hard to achieve, but who knows. As clear underdogs, maybe the pressure would get too much for other teams and our lads could perform well.
Latest! All season objectives released to the public. Read more here...
2008 Season Posts
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
Edited by rjc_43 on 03-09-2008 17:20
"I love him, I think he's great. He's transformed the sport in so many ways. Every person in cycling has benefitted from Lance Armstrong, perhaps not financially but in some sense" - Bradley Wiggins on Lance Armstrong
The government financed Adria Mobil Cycling team hit the dizzy heights of professional cycling earlier this month when it was announced that their 2008 season would be undertaken in the ranks of the Pro Tour teams.
Government officials were clearly overjoyed at this announcement, and were quick to praise Simon Spilak's performance during the 2007 season. So good were his performances that pro tour team Lampre, amongst others, were rumoured to have been interested in signing the youngster. Apparantly, after a quick negotiation with Adria's manager and the sponsors, more funds were released to support the development of this talented cyclist.
The 2007 season started off slowly for the team, with no races until half way through March. Once the team started, they just didn't stop though! Eager to please, the squad picked up some top ten results before truely getting into the swing of things. Injury stricken, the squad, which numbered 16 after a few early season signings, kept plugging away for their first win, which came in April. Not only did Spilak punch out of the peloton on more than one occasion during the Tour of Georgia, but he did so at vital times. Securing the first stage win of the year, and soon after the overall. Strong riding by lieutenant Tomasz Nose and super domestique Miha Svab kept the duo of Mikhail Ignatiev and Vasili Kiryienka in check. A scare during the penultimate stage, where a group of 20 broke off the front due to a strong head wind, did not come to much. Rather, after the team chased the gap down to less than a miinute, Spilak took on the final relay to bring the gap down to nothing by the finish.
By the end of the season, Simon Spilak had amassed an astonishing amount of wins, only being beaten by Wiesenhof's Olaf Pollack. He would win the Superprestige rankings however, which was more than a suitable reward for his consistant riding. Notable results by Simon were the overall at the Tour of Georgia, along with becoming National Champion, an 8th place at the World Championships whilst supporting Tadej Valjavec to a World Champions Jersey.
Racing alongside the big names of the cycling world, Spilak came a close 2nd to Tom Boonen in one occasion, proving that he can sprint with THE best, as well as beating many over the small sharp climbs. Racing in Italy for much of the year proved useful in showcasing the team, but unfortunately the strategy failed when it came to achieving a wild card in the Giro, or in signing a possible Giro challenger. Another young Italien star is rumoured to have signed with the team, but is going to be given a free role to chase for stage wins during the 2008 edition, rather than chasing the overall.
Signing on for another 3 years, Bike producers Moser had great confidence in the teams ability to perform amongst the superstars.
Weak areas of the team were quite clear until a couple of late signings covered the bunch sprints of the peloton, along with support for Simon Spilak in the hills. With a less than enthusiatic approach to the cobbled classics, the squad will hope to gain experience in that area before trying to strengthen the squad with an Eastern European signing for the next few years.
When it was known that Adria Mobil would be reaching the 2 year goal, one year earlier than predicted, more funds were made available for new signings. Whilst the funds for home talent Spilak were easy to come by, by contrast the funds for new signings of riders outside the locality of the country were harder to secure. A couple of new sponsors, such as Fiat, Butan Plin (energy provider) and Riko Eco-Homes came onboard at the last minute to help rally behind Slovenian's best sportsmen. As the increase in funds allowed the managerial staff to look elsewhere for talent, the squads numbers increased to the maximum size allowed by the UCI. Joining the squad for 2008, Roman Kreuziger from Czech neighbours, would give the team undoubted depth.
Unfortunately the squad could not keep all the riders they had taken on at the start of 2007. Whilst Jure Zagar has his contract extended for the foreseeable future, his brother, Tine, did not. Underperforming this year, and having not shown any kind of progression past that of a 15 year old, even after 80 races, the managerial staff grew tired. His parting was unpained, and he would go back into the search for another team. Robert Kiserlovski was transfered over to the Rabobank Continental squad. Whilst initially all offers for Robert were denied, the funds required to bring in more talented riders were needed, and so for 440,000 euros, he was sold. A quick chat during the middle of the season secured the services of Czech Roman Kreuziger, along with neo pros Rok Tiganj, a rider suited to cobbles and the cold, Dejan Simundza, also good on cobbles and Velimir Pus, a strong rider on flat terrain. Hinted to be as strong as the famous Magnus Backsted.
Talks with Liquigas really bore fruit, as Slovenian Matej Mugerli came to join his countrymen. Ex-Discovery Channel rider Uros Murn came along for the ride too. This will be his last year however, but he is proud to be able to pass on his experience to the young riders on the squad. With Wiesenhof having been promoted to the top tier of cycling (going in the opposite direction to which it was rumoured. Instead of pulling out of cycling, they increased their budget greatly, managing to sign Valverde and Lokvist.), Peter Velits was found to be no longer needed on the German squad and so moved over to Adria Mobil for a small 200,000 euro fee.
Joining Kreuziger on the squad, is sprinter Petr Kubias. Coming from PSK Whirlpool, the young sprinter showed promise this year, and was disappointed not to have his contract renewed with Whirlpool. A free roaming contract on Adria Mobil soon cheered the youngster up. Not only will the youth on this team have a chance to ride the biggest tours, but they'll be developed under some of the best Italian coaches out there.
Polish riders Piotr Mazur (SDV), Mateusz Mroz (CCC Polsat) and Artur Pryzdzial all join the squad for this year, increasing sprinting and time trialing amongst the team.
Swiss rider Danilo Wyss joins early year signing Silvan Dillier by the end of the year, on a 3 year contract. He will hope to ride at least one grand tour and a vast range of other one day classics to develop his flat strength.
Another Ex Discovery rider, Sergio Paulinho joins the squad as an able lieutenant for Simon Spilak in the hills. With a 3 year contract, the squad hope he will develop into a capable leader himself. Rather than just relying on Spilak for results.
Super sprinter Lloyd Mondory joined the squad, just one week before Christmas. The managerial staff were astonished that he has not been signed up by a French squad, but were just as happy to give him his 22,500 euro a month contract to ride the tour, along with Paris-Tours and other sprinter based tours, such as the Eneco.
Jonas Decouttere is an able bodied cobbled classics rider who, by next year, will be amongst the best in the world. This year its doubted he'd be able to stick with the speed of the top names over the cobbles of Paris Roubaix, Ronde Van Vlanderen and Gent Wevelgem, but we've been assured he'll do his best!
Italian Star Morris Possoni will be the captain for Tirreno Adriatico and then later the Giro, before settling down to possibly focus on another supporting role for Spilak or Kreuziger. He joins the squad after Daniele Ratto, a young talented climber and stage racer, spent the year with the team and recommended a place on the squad. Managerial staff hope to see the best of the duo during the Giro, with stage wins being given a strong emphasis.
Adria Mobil's 2008 Team Roster:
Leaders: Lloyd Mondory (Sprints) Roman Kreuziger (Tour, Vuelta double) Simon Spilak (Ardenne Classics, Tour) Morris Possoni (Giro, Tour double)
Lieutenants Miha Svab Tomasz Nose Marko Kump Jure Zrimsek Danilo Wyss Sergio Paulinho Peter Velits
Domestiques/Young Talents Jonas Decouttere Daniele Ratto Silvan Diller Petr Kubias Velimir Pus Dejan Simundza Rok Tiganj Jure Zagar Joze Senekovic Blaz Jarc Blaz Furdi Benjamin Cujnik Ahmed Bara Artur Przydizal Mateusz Mroz Piotr Mazur Dmytro Grabovskyy Uros Murn Matej Muggerli
When talking to the Adria managerial staff, we couldn't help but enquire as to their aims for the year. The staff were keeping most of the information under wraps before talking to the squad about their season goals as well, but they were happy to tell us that the Tour de France would be a focal point of the season. They felt that the pressure was on the most for a good performance in the Tour, as it is clearly the highest point of cycling in the world, and the hardest place to achieve greatness. When asked to put a number, or placing, on the expectation, the number 10 came out. When scanning the team sheet, a top ten result in the hardest 3 week grand tour in the world would definately be hard to achieve, but who knows. As clear underdogs, maybe the pressure would get too much for other teams and our lads could perform well.
So, when we sat down with the Managers of Adria Mobil to get their take on this coming years races, we had to ask more about the Tour.
The Slovak Spectator: So, we hear that the team is aiming for a top ten finish in the Tour de France this year. What hopes do you have of achieving such a hard goal?
Adria Mobil Manager: Well, with a top 10 finish we hope to push the team to their limits. Obviously we don't have to wreck the guys, but we want to make sure they know their limits. With this years route fairly hard, the difference between a top 15 finish and a top 10 finish could be as much as 10 minutes. At the end of the day, as long as the squad do their best, we will be happy.
TSS: Ok, but if you'd be happy with their best, why did you set the barrier at 10, and not 5, or even a podium?
ADM: Again, it's all to do with psychology. We think that Roman Kreuziger, who will be our number one for the tour, can achieve a top 10 if he rides the best he can, but if we set him a top 15, he might not perform. And again, if we set a top 5 he'll think we are asking too much, or just think we're having a joke and not try his hardest. Trust us, we discussed this all at length before we even gave him a contract to sign.
TSS: Oh, so it wasn't for definate that you were going to sign him?
ADM: We had him in our sights for the whole year now. We can just tell that he's going to be as good as Contador in a few years.
TSS: On the subject of Contador, won't his prescence in the Tour attract a much easier field? Especially as he appears to be so dominating at the moment?
ADM: No way! If anything the field will be harder. But we will be sending Simon Spilak and Morris Possoni along with Roman to support in the hills and mountains. We will be prepared.
TSS: Sounds good! Is the Tour the only main focus this year, or have there been other targets set?
ADM: Well, of course we have to set other riders targets as well, and as such Spilak will be focusing on trying to get a top 5 in the Amstel Gold Race. He'll race Paris Nice first off to get ready, and will be at Milan San Remo as well. He's really fired up for this year, and with all the pressure we pile on him he seems just to get more and more eager to please.
TSS: A quality rider then! What about the other smaller tours? Surely you must have some ideas about those?
ADM: Yeah, well we hope that Nose will progress this year and step up to the next level. If he does, he'll be leading a squad for the Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian where again we hope for another top 5. Other than that we are just looking for wins as usual. We know they won't be as often this year as the top riders will have to focus on harder races, but we are willing to be patient and give the riders all the support they need.
TSS: Last, but not least, we heard that the Vuelta holds a place close to your heart. Care to elaborate?
ADM: Ok, well when i was a young boy, the first race i saw was the Vuelta when i was on holiday. A sprint finish into a near by city spurred me on to create a cycling team within Slovenia and so here we are, ready to race our own Vuelta. Because of this, I set my own target of hoping to wear the points jersey at the Vuelta. That will really bring it home for me.
TSS: Many thanks for taking the time to talk to us.
ADM: No problem, any time.
Recap of Season Goals for 2008:
Top 10 Overall finish in the Tour de France
Stage Win(s) in the Tour de France
Top 5 Finish in Amstel Gold Race
Wear the Sprinters jersey in the Vuelta Espana
Top 5 Overall finish in the Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian
Important Races for Sponsors:
*** Tour de France
*** Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian
** Vuelta Espana
** Giro di Lombardia
* Paris - Nice
* Omloop Het Volk
SportingNonsense wrote:
Good start, should be good - although youve only got 1 Slovakian in your squad
Yep. Thanks for pointing that out. I'd like to say now, that thanks to Isso i am aware of my blunder, but too stubborn to change the Newspaper title (it is a real online paper). But it's close enough (its on the same continent) to the actual team origin, so it'll do.
Info about the game:
Will be played on Hard.
Will be reporting in a similar style (or i hope to) as cyclingnews reports stages, as this allows me to decrease amount of clicking between racing and screenshot taking - which is how i used to report.
Stat's will not be shown unless specifically requested, and they'll be linked to only rather than put up as an image.
Ta for the interest. Hope you all enjoy reading.
Edited by rjc_43 on 02-09-2008 17:33
With the first races of the 2008 season beginning in a weeks time, now would be a good time to look at the signings - and mistakes - made by the biggest teams, and those most likely to join the ranks of the pro tour next year.
AG2r
Some interesting transfers by AG2r this year. Not renewing the clearly aging Moreau was possibly their best move. His wages would have again exceeded 20,000 euros a month, which if you ask anyone, is far far too much considering for the same price you could sign a talented rider for 3 years on that amount. Who you may well ask? Well, Tom Danielson joins from Discovery, along with Domencio Pozzovivo from the continental ranks. The two of them stand a chance at a good overall position on some of the mountainous courses during the year. They were wise to keep Nocentini, who has developed nicely into a good puncheur, and should bring in some points.
Best transfer
Domencio Pozzovivo - used wisely in the Giro could pick up a top 10 finish.
Worst transfer
Wasted money on signing Gregory Bauge who will do extremely well to finish a race, let alone get any results. The only positive is that he's only on a protected rider contract, not as a leader.
Caisse d'Epargne
Where to start? They didn't renew Valverde's contract, prefering to go for the option of searching for another leader. Apparantly his 2nd place overall at le Tour didn't satisfy. Not to worry though - they signed Cadel Evans to fill in the gap left by his departure. That's if you can call it a gap with the strength of their squad. Not only did they keep Karpets, Gutierrez, Pereiro, Rodriguez, Luis Sanchez and Arroyo but they signed Giovanni Visconti for another hilly rider along with more stage race support in the forms of Saul Raisin and John-Lee Augustyn. Should other teams be scared? Yes is the answer to that!
Best transfer
Giovanni Visconti will develop further into one of the best Italian puncheurs out there.
Worst transfer
Buying an aging 39 year old dane.
Cofidis
One of the many French squads, this one managed to survive the 2007 season in the pro tour - mainly thanks to their non french riders. With that in mind they signed a few brilliant talents who will, no doubt, keep them afloat this year too. Samuel Sanchez joins from Euskatel, along with aging French hero Moreau and spaniard David Lopez. As long as they rely on Sanchez for tour success and Lopez for the Vuelta they'll be fine. Along with the continued leadership of Nuyens, Chavanel (the good one) and Duque, Cofidis should do alright this year. Support in the sprints come from maturing talents Farrar and Sutton.
Best transfer
Samuel Sanchez undoubtedly.
Worst transfer
Buying an aging Moreau was never a great idea especially as a leader, at least it's only for a year!
Credit Agricole
The oldest team out there, they survived the relegation battle this year purely due to Unibets stupid tactics last year. Hushovd brought in just enough points and consistent top 10 finishes in races like Milan San Remo and Paris Roubaix to keep them up. Unfortunately for them this year, they didn't exactly sign anyone useful. Instead, opting to keep Mads Kaggestad which takes up a slot on the team. Bonnet has matured to be as good a sprinter as Hushovd, but will he be able to get enough sprint wins to get the points? Consistantly in the top 10 of each bunch sprint in the Vuelta and Tour last year he may well achieve. Two Spanish climbers join the squad, but aren't exactly the best of the bunch. Xavi Tondo and Ezequiel Mosquera may well surprise though. Keeping Halgand as a leader was the worst thing they could have done though.
Best transfer
Jerome Coppel is a new addition to the squad, and a brilliant catch. Even if they get relegated, he won't leave, and will easily help them be promoted the year after.
Worst transfer
Keeping Kaggestad!
Discovery Channel
It's almost easier to list who they've kept rather than got in. Keeping the cobbles squad of Hincapie, Gusev and Devolder was one of the best moves of the transfer season. Relatively cheap compared to some stage racers the three of them should dominate the cobbled classics. Kloden, Horner, Piepoli, Heras, Medina, Gadret, Posthuma, Mestre, Machado, Nino, Beltran, and youngster Belkov all signed for the Discovery train.
Best transfer
The addition of Gadret provides the squad a strong rider for the hills, whilst the majority of the other signings are already starting to fade after signing.
Worst transfer
Signing so many druggies! But honestly, Lars Michaelson, who should have retired a while ago, but will after this year.
Euskaltel - Euskadi
An all round good effort made by the orange clad men to sign some good riders, but they missed the mark with a few. Nether-the-less, signing Frank Schleck easily makes up for losing Sammy Sanchez. Zubeldia went, but in his place came Simoni - will he have another Giro in his legs? He doesn't appear to have faded as much as Piepoli thats for sure. Not only those two solid signings, but Astarloza stays, and with him Anton has filled in any space for a 4th stage racer, and with the able back up of still maturing Txurruka they should prove a tough opposition. Sprinters have also been brought in, with Italian Loddo coming in along with Spanish rider Javier Benitez. Koldo fernandez de larrea stays around as well. A good team.
Best transfer
Frank Schleck will be very useful in the hilly three.
Worst transfer
Russell Downing is always gobbled up by some pro tour, and Euskaltel was the sucker to fall for his charm this time.
Francaise de Jeux
The white Frenchies have kept Gilbert, Casar and and the worse Chavanel (sprinter typey). And brought in some really good team leaders. Caucchiolli, Mazzanti, Pineau and Perez should all make staying up another year a breeze. The majority of the team is still french, thank goodness!
Best transfer
Caucchiolli looks like he might be able to do something in the Giro this year if his luck is right.
Worst transfer
Nico Mattan was passed it last year, so why he went up to the pro tour this year is past me!
Gerolsteiner
The germans are at it again! Invading the world for the best one day racers. For the hills they have Rebellin, Wegmann and Moletta. For the sprints, Chicchi, Gasparotto, Forster and Haussler. For cobbles, Kopp and Klier. And finally, for the stage races, a fully ready Kohl and Fothen. With plenty of young talent ready to break though beneath these leaders, the squad won't be in need of anything for long. If anything, their only mistake was not to splash out a little more on a better cobble leader. But with the talent everywhere else, they won't need it.
Best transfer
Moletta strengthens an already awesume line up for the hills.
Worst transfer
David Lelay. He's french. Everyone knows French and German doesn't work.
The Lampre squad obviously had a pleasing season for their sponsors. Not only did they keep Ballan, Franzoi, Bennati, Valjavec, Napolitano, and Coroni, but they signed some interesting riders. Popovych, first rumoured to be going to fill in where Evans fell out of at Lotto, is signed to do the big one. We have our doubts. Zubeldia will be there for the Vuelta, (we guess anyway) and he should do ok, but again, we doubt he'll ever win it. Oliver Zaugg however looks like a quality signing. With some way to go for full maturity, when he reaches it he'll be just in time for the tour. And we wouldn't be surprised if he pipps Yaroslav for leadership.
Best transfer
Matteo Carrara gives the team back up for Ballan should the worst occur to him during the cobbles.
Worst transfer
Roger Hammond. For his 35,000 euro a month fee, the decrease in abilities to an average pro tour cobble rider is far too heavy. Unlucky buy really. He retires this year anyway.
Liquigas
The guys in green made a strong stand when they resigned Di Luca. Obviously his doping practices don't matter to them. Pozzato, Nibali, Bertagnolli, Pellizotti, Quinziato and Backsted all stay. Whilst Veelers joins from Rabobank Continental.
Best transfer
Veelers is the only good new face in.
Worst transfer
Keeping Maggie for two more years on a 20,000 euros a month leader role is an awful decision.
Predictor Lotto
Cadel Evans left the squad, and guess who for! Yep, thats right, for trackie Theo Bos. A few average additions to the squad will help the team gain a mid table finish again. Hoste stays, along with Leukemans, Vansummeren, Van den Broeck, and Roesems. Joining them is Barbosa, the portugese sprinting climber, and Garate. For the flats, Pollack, who aided Wiesenhof gain promotion, joins the team. Rujano gains a place on the team too. He performed well in the Vuelta this past year, but who knows if he can repeat a performance like that.
Best transfer
Frederick Nolf joins, and will provide good support for Hoste this year on the cobbles.
Worst transfer
Without a doubt, Theo Bos. But at least he isn't as bad as Bauge!
Quickstep
They did some weird stuff this year. First not renewing Bettini, before then signing a contract during November with him. Boonen was always going to stay, and along with him, the core of the team stays too. Van Impe, Rosseler, de Jongh, Weylandt and Hulsman. A big intake this year, mainly of stage racers, will see the team become a threat in the grand tours now. Cobo, Brajkovic, Rogers, Joly, Botero and a heap of helpers.
Best transfer
Young Molodovian Pluischin will be a great purchase for the future.
Worst transfer
Bettini. No reason, other than he was rumoured to be going to Adria Mobil first before a bigger budget swayed his decision.
Rabobank
Wow, big team, big budget, big targets. Gesink, Dekker, Flecha, Freire, Weening, Eltink, Ardila, and Brown are joined by some bigger names. Cunego, Rasmussen, Paolini, Siutsou, Rovny and Sabatini all join to increase the vast amounts of talent in the squad.
Best transfer
Cunego gives them an option for the Giro, now that Gesink and Dekker can cover the Vuelta and Tour.
Worst transfer
Rasmussen. As much time as he can game in the mountains he'll lose twice as much in time trials.
Saunier Duval
The yellow squad of druggies have been half replaced, by other druggies. Piepoli and Simoni went, and Contador and Sevilla arrived. Blanco and Monfort also make the move. Ventoso is more than capable in the sprints now, and could challenge for the green jersey in the tour had he the mind to do so.
Best transfer
Keeping Ricco for the Giro, and getting Contador for the Tour. Can't be beat!
Worst transfer
Guido Trentin was a useless buy.
T-Mobile
A rather bad year for T-Mobile we feel, as the only riders they were really able to keep were the sprinters. Cavendish, Eisel, Greipel are joined by Steegmans and Pacheco. Bellotti joins to help Kim Kirchen, whilst Burghardt gets the addition of Coyot to help him. Ignatiev just joins for fun. Morabito will perform well at the hilly races if Kirchen was to focus on the tour. Who they have for the Giro and Vuelta is unknown.
Best transfer
Ignatiev is a superstar, or will be post Paris-Nice.
Worst transfer
Not signing a good stage racer is their big problem rather than someone bad signed.
Astana
A brilliant transfer season sees Astana rid themselves of the old (Savoldelli, Kloden) and get a new oldy in. Menchov joins and is a great bet for a good season. Ivanov can still pack a punch on the cobbles, whilst Barredo and Ten Dam cover the hills option. Linus Gerdemann is a great asset to the squad as Iglinsky just wouldn't be able to hack it at the heights of grand tours. Bazayev is a good sprinter now, and when on form will bring in the wins for Astana.
Best transfer
Linus Gerdemann has years of winning races ahead of him.
Worst transfer
Keeping Ivanov over a new cobbles man, such as Steegmans is a mistake we feel.
CSC
Another great team, which really didn't need improving, and thats just what's happened. The loss of Frank Schleck isn't a problem when you take into account the addition of Schumacher. Cancellara, OGrady, A.Schleck, Sastre and Voigt all stick around, with sprinters Goss and Haedo improving well. Savoldelli has joined, and will provide great back up in the grand tours, but he won't be winning much this year.
Best transfer
Stefan Schumacher is a brilliant addition to the team.
Worst transfer
Hernan Buenahora is, amazingly, still riding a bike at 40. Useful, or useless? Time will tell.
Milram
Team Milram had an awful year last year, somehow managing to stay out of relegation with Credit Agricole. That reflected in their transfers when they bought aging Kroon. But they snaffled up Boasson Hagen, Mori, Davis, and Grivko stook with them. Relegation favourites in my eyes if Petacchi and Rigotto don't perform. Only 22 riders in the team, so could be a long hard struggle for many of the riders.
Best transfer
Without a doubt, best out there, Hagen.
Worst transfer
Why take another expensive sprinter, Davis, when they are in need of a stage racer?
Team Wiesenhof
The last team to be seen, and the first to be promoted. Unfortunately, with Wesemann retiring last year, they lack a cobble rider, and will struggle in that area at the very least. The absence of any good sprinter is also obvious, with Van Djik providing their only option. A late buy of Peter Velits by Adria Mobil allowed the team to hire Valverde, for whom they will have to rely on soley if they want to stick with the big boys. Thomas Lovkvist, Victor Hugo Pena and Constantino Zaballa don't look too promising. Two youngsters, Ben Hermans and Alexander Efimkin could help save the squad if they mature in time. But don't hedge your bets on them
Best transfer
Valverde, Valverde, Valverde. Their only hope.
Worst transfer
Resigning Martin Velits whilst releasing Peter, his talented brother. Duh!
Riders unsigned for the current year:
Levi Leipheimer
Robbie McEwen
Gerald Ciolek
Eric Zabel
Edited by rjc_43 on 02-09-2008 23:38
