I am really pleased with the way things are going, it just is falling my way at the moment. I had a great day at Herbiers and here again things just went for me. I have no doubts that Sam Bewley and Tom Boonen have the edge in a flat out sprint but both just got their tactics wrong today. Tom well he is still the super cobbler, he likes to have a hit out at Omloop but I think everyone was determined to stop him today.

For me I would have attacked had the pack been smaller but there were too many guns left today, I managed to pick up Pipo Pozzato's wheel and we saw how fast he is going in Italy. Sam Bewley went too early into the wind and I felt strong and so it proved.

Wins are really big business for us and this race was one the sponsors wanted so to see Fab grabbing that was a massive boost. The whole team worked hard today, I think the trio of stage races whilst it splits the team it can work to bring everything together. With some good racing there and again in Milan San Remo, we were ready for a big performance. Both Marcel Sibilla and Seb Turgot made the final group which was useful and all the riders rode well in Omloop.

Obvious this, East midlands and Gent-Wegulum are preludes to the big ones as far as cobbles are concerned but this result shows that we are a force to be reckoned with. Pokerstars for me are still the stand out team, I think they showed a lot but the tactic wasn't quite right for today.

I am happy that Fab went for it, though the parcours were not quite selective enough for it to stick with so many favourites behind playing for the sprint. I guess Turgot sprinting through for a good place allows me to feel a bit better about it - but Fab didn't feel he could take the sprint again here and it keeps his rivals guessing

We have seen so many sprint already, it was clear that Boonen, Bennati, Swift and Bewley are on another planet. Guerao also has tremendous raw speed as we saw in Catalunya, so fir Michael Van Stayen to get a podium was amazing

I think all of our cobbled squad has been going really well. Turgot, Sibella and Cancellara are all making the selections, giving us that sense of team strength. Alex Aulas, Tim Vangheel and Kevin Ista are also going nicely, Alex really showed in the recent crit series in Belgium that he is going really well on cobbles this year also

I hope we can show ourselves in the Basque country but in all honest I know we are not as strong against the hilly classic riders. Bobridge has been battling hard and is gaining some great experience leading the fight there. But I will be at the cobbled races looking for some big results

We came into this year following a side adventure last year into cobbles , we did win a low key cobbled race in Denmark but we were well short in the tougher races. On particular on the cobbles at Roubaix for which we received a wild card, however I was hooked and we knew that several top named cobblestone experts would be up for grabs in the next transfer window. We made it out target to put together a hit squad of northern classics experts.

We went for three of the biggest names Cancellara, Boonen and Blythe, based on last years wages we thought it was possible to land at least two of those three names. Of course other teams had that idea. Pokerstars pushed the price of Boonen up to one million, so we redoubled our efforts of bringing Cancellara in on a rider transfer from Bouygues Telecom. Blythe was looking for a leadership role, so we missed out on him to but did bring in a decent French trio of Turgot, Sibilla and Aulas along with Belgians Vangheel and Ista and young Italian Comenelli. This created a unit of seven highly capable cobblers to combine with tough sprinter Van Heerden and super all rounder Jelloul.

The cobbled season kicked off with Omloop and what a start it was with Cancellara coming off Pozzato's wheel in the straight. It was a big win goal and after reigning in his attacking nature Canc saved his bullet for the sprint. It was a fantastic team showing from the guys with Sibilla and Turgot making the selection.

Cancellara went on the attack in the East Midlands cobbled race, this was a test of his form ahead of the big two monument races. It was reeled in again but with no other real attacks we saw Sibilla and Turgot make that final selection again. Turgot managed an excellent 6th place in the sprint proving that a bit of finishing speed is always welcome in these races.

Gent Wegulum is a classic that can end in a pretty big sprint, so we took Van Heerden along. He did make the final group but was not feeling strong enough for the sprint so Cancellara went for it with a very decent podium. It proved thanks to us and Pokerstars fairly selective and once again we had three there in the final shake up. It was great sprint again by Fab, something he had not always been the best at in previous years.

For some reason Fabian has always found this race difficult, despite it looking like one that suits him the most. Perhaps he just doesn't feel it as riders like Boonen and the young Kiwi Bewley does. He wasn't really following the moves made by the likes of Boonen, Bewley and Gusev, which he usually can elsewhere. It is worth nothing that Sibilla finished 10th here, a highly encouraging placing for a domestique

I don't think anyone will really know whether Fab was strong enough to win Roubaix this year. The crash that just followed the big move made by he and Burghardt definitely effected things. It was just about the worst moment to crash, thankfully he was unhurt but the time lost proved really hard to make up. The key moment in the race was when Bewley went and Fab tried but couldn't follow at that moment. He rode on to finish a gallent 4th.

Overall, I think we had a very decent stab at the cobbles. I think we were one win away from it being a success. The hard work now though will be working out who to combat Bewley and the other new names Summerhill and Blythe for next year. We also hope to crack the podium in the remaining cobbled classics

The Ardennes was always going to be about gathering experience and some of the guys were a bit disappointed failing to get anywhere near the places they hoped for. The reality is that if you are not a big favourite positioning goes out the window and that is the key there. Jack Bobridge will be a threat in these races one day I think, but not just yet.

Romandie was all about getting Emanuele ready for the Giro with hopes of a decent GC. Tour de France favourites battled here along with that Grand Tour chicken Gesink. He finished 9th, but I think improtantly showed himself to be in the top 5 mountain climbers in the field with a sensation MTT.

Well the team has never won a stage in a grand tour and wins are a bit thin on the ground this year. Juan Van Heerden should keep us interested early on, though beating the likes of Swift and Bennati will be very difficult. There is four real sprinters stages in the first week and I think Juan will be looking for a couple of podiums at least. I wonder if we will go for a sprint train with Cooper, Viviani and Sulzberger.

This race is a bit old school in the extreme amount of chrono we have packed in the race. But that should result in far more attacking in the climbs. The first time trial at the end of the first week could be largely negated by the next two days in the mountains. Emanuele knows he will have a great chance in one of his favourite climbs up Terminello

The second TT will really hurt, it is nearly 60km and minutes will be lost and then have to be gained in the final week. But as ever the Giro is loaded in that last week. The three days after the long TT will be brutal and as Sella showed at Romandie as long as a Chrono goes up he can gain time. Saint Bernhard should be a day to gain, as will the Planaval and Gavia stage.

The organisors have saved something special for last, I hope we can keep Van Heerdan going for some sprint stages, but even more I hope for Emanuele to still be in the GC picture coming into Zoncalon. This could be his revenge on the TTers, up the classic Giro climb

It's going to be a fascinating Giro, with the two rivals from last year Ricco and Sella likely brothers in arms here looking to attack foriegn raiders like Spilak, Phinney and Madrazo. I guess we'll see how good that Spaniard actually is.

The first two weeks we were on the back foot, Swift and Bennati were leaving nothing in the sprints and Manu was haemorrhaging time all over the place. But things started to turn for our mountain man on the Uphill time trial where he placed third. That gave him the confidence to try on the Gavia.

I was astounded at the strength Manu showed that day, time and again he found extra strength to dig himself clear, dropping riders like Henao and Ricco who'd attacked across to him. It was a magnificent perfomance. The team were so excited that evening and we got some luck on the next day when the break was clear with Viviani to contest the next days finish

We'd tried to get in breakaways every day pretty much and we have some good riders for small group sprints. It was nice for Vivi to get in one, I think Tolleson underestimated his kick when he led out for the stage.

Having two top quality sprinters is nice when you have these stage race double headers and Michael was in great form in California winning a couple of stages and taking two runner up berths to the points jersey. Certainly the best sprinters performance we have ever seen at Simply Red Bull, possibly since Arashiro's Tour Down Under. Fabian Cancellara almost pulled off an Arashiro of his own.

Fab took out the chrono comfortably, so much so in fact that he looked a danger on GC, especially when we came out of Bear Lake still with the leaders jersey. He was there at the front too as we approached the Mount Baldy finale

Ultimately the climbers just managed to nudge Cancellara out of the leaders jersey but he still held on to a stunning podium. Great news for us really, I was concerned we would flounder in the Protour stage races but we have done okay in May!

The Vuelta has already started and we are ambitiously aiming for stage wins here too, with Van Stayen hopefully carrying some California form with him. I just hope all our team can get over some of the short mountain stages

No doubt these two are really leading the way for us both recording their fourth wins of the season really propping us up as we see the stronger stage racing teams begin to climb the rankings. Van Stay has some excellent toughness, he was a bit unfortunate to not take many other higher places and is proving one of the most consistent sprinters around in the Protour

Fab was just in extraordinary form in Italy, he made the other riders look very ordinary indeed even the new superstar Bewley. He has a bit of a break now before his final season goals at the Tour of Northern Europe and Tour of Tasmania.

Going into the tour we have the two stage races going on at the moment and Grand Duche. Phinney is looking really good at the Dauphine, so Wiki are going ahead. We hear though that they and Koenigsegg are not confident about their tour teams. There is still a chance for teams like Vesuvio to close in on them. Things will tighten up I think with a real rat race following the Tour. So anything gained there will be massive for teams

I am calling it now Aker, Pokerstars and Simply Red Bull are safe. As long as they fill their media commitments the star names of these teams have really performed. Puma are looking good too VdB has made up for any Bennati disappointments. I think the Italian could do a good Tour too.

The big surprises for me is Lotto, of course they have Cunego at the Tour, and Bacardi, who really have got problems. Bacardi need something to happen for them I reckon at the tour or some kind of miraculous group of results. It could be really tight for the other places, Heineken are really battling hard and B and O, Pendletons are just hovering around where they have been all year.

We came to the Dauphine really with one goal to take the second stage with Micheal Van Stayen, which we successfully delivered

Michael has been phenomenal for us. After this we were looking for the right breakaway and Rain got in a move on stage 7, which also was important for the King of the Mountains competition. In a very attacking last 25kms he survived well to take second on the stage. But even more sensational was Tommy Stubbe's small group sprint win on the last day in Switzerland.

Both Tommy and Rain have made the Tour team along with other breakaway 'experts' Facci and Moinard. I'll be the first to admit it is a fairly weak tour team with Vangheel, Cooper, Jelloul and young George Bennett making up to squad along with our sprinter Van Heerden. Jaan is desperate to make something of his season which has been below par so far

First item of news following the Tour was that Simply markets were pulling the sponsorship. They felt that the team being unable to compete on the big days at the Tour was not good enough and I can understand the mentality. Red Bull are happy enough to continue to support the franchise and we are looking for some sort of fusion project once more. We have a few in mind.

The team are well motivated for a push for a top ten spot in the world tour, Sella is going over to Colombia and Fab has the Tour of Northern Europe to focus on as well as the season end time trials.

Obviously Manu's GC results this year have not been close to what he has been used to (6th Colombia, 8th Volta, 9th Romandie and 7th Giro) but there has been some highlights along the way. Manu is contemplating one more crack at the Giro, though he is realistic as to whether he can nab a decent finish. He may consider a drop down the divisions we will have to see.

Michael Van Stayen meanwhile continues to amaze, he has had a fine season and will look for one more stage win down in Tasmania for the final stage race of the season

We go to the German Tour with hopes that Juan can get one sprint right, there should be three field gallops so he will look to do some damage. Other than that it is breakaway territory

With SRB's first season in the Protour coming toward a close - exclusive kit designed OlegTinkov approached us with a innovative design for a jersey for next season. We had no hesitation in saying yes to this excellent piece of work.

This season has been full of excellent moments - the GTour stage wins, Cancellara's classics etc. I have been frustrated at time that our jersey has looked similar to others - it will be great to go for a new colour scheme. Who knows maybe JvH can find a way to sprint better?

A brilliant first season with plenty of wonderful success - Van Stayen and Van Heerden produced in the sprints, Sella on the mountains and Cancellara was just awesome on the cobbles and against the clock.

I think others in the team delivered from time to time as well. Sibilla is an exciting prospect on the cobbles and I am also impressed by climbing domestiques Stubee and Margaliot. We would like to thank Oz Cycling for loaning us the really awesome prospect Jack Bobridge who weighed in nicely for us.

As always at this time of the year the usual bunch of con artist and tricksters are out to play! But when you sift through the hyperbole there are some interesting initial overtures that I would like to respond to

It is highly likely that the majority of our 19 man squad will be retained, there is no rider in our squad who does not have a price though I would admit some would likely need a decent part exchange deal.

Certainly the likes of Juan Van Heerden and Adil Jelloul would be available. Both have talked to me about press speculation about the Project Africa movement, though I feel a rider like Van Heerden who whilst not brilliant in the protour was highly successful in Continental races in his youth would attract much interest.

French veteran Amael Moinard is looking for a small team to led in his later years and popular Australian Wes Sulzberger could also be available for a decent cash sum

Manu Sella is considering his options also, having raced in the Protour for some time he can see his best climbing days behind him. Having seen some rejuvenation in fellow countryman Dominico Pozzovivo by dropping down a division he may just follow suit.

Smowz then nailed his colours to the mast in naming Simply Red Bull as another of Thibout Pinot's Suitors. I think we will be one of those in the interested category in this highly regarded French rider. He had an impressive year last time out and I think he could really kick on this time out.