A shame to see you go down I really thought you had a good team structure. Maybe you lacked one big leader next to Choi. I thought Bissegger and your sprinters (Sureda, Sanikwathi and Hamza) could have done better than they did.
Curious to see which riders will still race in your colours next season
MG - Lotto - Caloi
[MG] New Manager of the Year - PCM.daily Awards 2022
All of our 6 talents are developing from lvl 3 to lvl 4. With our relegation to CT the last part of their development will be a bit tricky. Let's see what transfer season brings.
Nevertheless, it's time to present their developments. We'll go in ascending order of how excited we're about them.
Henri Vandenabeele | Pot 4 | Climberv2
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
66
72
70
60
63
71
70
60
63
68
66
68
60
25
67
74
71
60
65
73
71
60
63
69
68
71
60
26
Pure climbing domestique. We opted for V2 despite the lack of development in the hills. He should still be decent in the medium mountains and will improve more in other key areas.
Mikel Demiri | Pot 4 | Fighter
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
69
53
53
71
66
66
65
55
67
74
80
64
71
25
72
54
54
72
68
68
67
56
68
76
82
65
72
26
Demiri could have developed into a fair TTT piece, but it would be a waste of his aggression. We went with the obvious fighter path even though he'll never be world class.
Moses Moiruri | Pot 4 | Stage Race
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
68
59
62
72
66
69
68
60
60
67
70
65
72
24
69
61
64
74
68
71
70
60
60
68
71
65
74
25
Now we get our TTT rider. Moiruri is part of our sponsors’ target area, and therefore likely to stay on the team. However, with limited viability next season he could be sacrificed.
We could have gone with both the stage race or the time trial path. If I remember correctly, the gain in medium mountains was the deciding factor, although he'll never excel in the mountains.
Aurelien De Comarmond | Pot 5 | Track-Sprint
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
71
62
68
63
68
73
69
58
72
72
62
63
69
23
73
62
69
64
69
75
74
58
75
74
62
64
71
24
It is starting to get exciting now. De Comarmond will develop into a great leadout rider or even a lead sprinter in CT. We opted for track-sprint, as he could be a GC threat in the right races in C2 despite the lack of stamina.
Lameck Marco Kulindwa | Pot 5 | Climberv1
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
67
71
70
64
70
71
71
56
58
71
68
71
59
24
68
74
73
65
71
72
73
56
58
73
71
72
60
25
Already a decent domestique in stage races next season. We considered going the stage race path, but with V1 he still gains a little time-trial proficiency. Then we add in the hill, acceleration, and fighter gains which adds the possibility of chasing KoM in the CT when maxed. Therefore, we chose climber V1.
Pavel Bittner | Pot 5 | Sprinter
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Age
70
58
69
62
71
72
70
67
74
75
66
61
67
23
72
59
70
62
73
73
79
69
77
77
66
62
67
24
Top of the class. Bittner has already developed into a great rider, but he can become a world class sprinter within a few years. We chose the sprinter path to increase stamina and cobbles (besides sprint and acceleration obviously), as he might be able to play a role in C2 cobbled races after his full development.
Edited by Caspi on 18-05-2026 12:31
It's definitely unlucky to relegate in general, but especially when all your talents are on level 4 in CT. If needed you'll surely find loaning options (especially for Bittner), but it will be a hard time to juggle the loan and salary caps for five riders while still building a squad competitive to fight for promotion.
Bittner will be a great asset when maxed. Unfortunate time to relegate (if there is ever is a fortunate one) but Bittner, De Comarmond and Vandenabeele should easily find loans.
Indeed, level 4 is tough to deal with in CT, but it's not impossible to navigate. Worst case a couple become good assets for transfers, but most should be able to fit in loans.
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy
@kb
True, it’s never fun to relegate.
We won't be able to juggle the loan and salary caps for six riders while still building a squad competitive to fight for promotion. So, someone will have to go.
@Abhi
Really looking forward to seeing Bittner maxed. Hopefully, I'll find some cash to train him.
Good to hear that some of the talents will likely be easy to find a new (temporary) home for. Especially, De Comarmond as he's the most likely to go out on loan.
@bbl
Well, level 4 isn't impossible for one or two riders in CT. Six however...
Nevertheless, they can become good assets in the transfer market, as you said, in case we still want to aim for promotion.
So, this is how we assessed our chances before the season. Results added with colored text next to the objective.
Goals
The goals will be rated in terms of our chances of success and the importance for the sponsors. Both ratings will go from 0-5. For the chance of succes, zero (0) means that we expect less than 10 % chance of success and five (5) asterisks means we assess that there's more than 90 % chance of success.
Tour of East Java
Top 10
24th
Chances of success: *
Importance for sponsors: ***
Difficult but not impossible. Carapaz will spearhead the team in East Java. He will most likely fall short of a top 10 in the GC, but we're sending the best support our team can muster and hope that will motivate him to the fullest.
Down Under Classic
Win
23rd
Chances of success:
Importance for sponsors: ****
No chance of success for our first (goal) race of the season. Of course you should never say never, but this goal was chosen when Zariff was still in the team, and a surprise win seems very unlikely at the moment.
Benelux Challenge
Stage Win
2nd
Chances of success: ***
Importance for sponsors: **
Our biggest chance to complete a sponsor objective this season. Schomber is here for the prologue and should be able to podium. For the following stages we've brought Meurisse and Sanikwathi among others to chase stages.
Stage Wins in a Season
8 Wins
4 wins
Chances of success: *
Importance for sponsors: ***
With a little luck this goal can be successful. It will require that the margins go our way in some important stages. We've mostly identified C1 races as key if this should come true. Regardless, it will require some top performances from several riders.
Team Standings
Top 15
22nd
Chances of success: **
Importance for sponsors: **
With a very evenly matched mid-table in PCT, we can end anywhere from 10th to 23rd. If we avoid relegation team manager, Caspi, will be satisfied even though the sponsors are looking for a top 15 in the team standings.
No need to linger. We didn't complete a single goal... We were only close in Benelux Tour with two top 10, two top 5, and a podium from Schomber in the prologue.
Luckily, there were a few highlights throughout the season. A fun ToA where we got (too) close to the sun. A surprise win for Manamalage in GP Herning, a stage win by Sureda in Balkans International, and TTT victory in both Tour of Lithuania and Vuelta al Pais Vasco.
I really thought you had a good team structure. Maybe you lacked one big leader next to Choi. I thought Bissegger and your sprinters (Sureda, Sanikwathi and Hamza) could have done better than they did.
