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[PCT '24] McCormick Pro Cycling
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| AbhishekLFC |
Posted on 04-09-2024 19:26
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 11677
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PCM$: 1861.50
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Really surprising development with McNulty moving on. Sosa and Yates are great signings nonetheless!
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| knockout |
Posted on 04-09-2024 20:06
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7735
Joined: 21-12-2010
PCM$: 400.00
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Definitely some good signings even when the shock of seeing McNulty leave is still there. Curious what your next "mission" is now.
Staune-Mittet is also a very cool talent to build up.
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| redordead |
Posted on 06-09-2024 07:47
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
PCM$: 200.00
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You never told me McNulty was on the table when asking about Buitrago 
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 24-11-2024 13:18
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Bot Agent
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Joined: 23.11.09
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| Ulrich Ulriksen |
Posted on 06-09-2024 22:48
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 3264
Joined: 02-11-2010
PCM$: 300.00
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@Abhi - Got to keep things fresh
@Knockout - Part of my struggle is I haven't really figured out the next mission
@Red - You have Tadej, you don't need Brandon.
McCormick Pro Cycling finalized their roster for 2024 with the signings of free agents Pierre Barbier and Alex Julajuj. With only 10 of the 21 riders and just 1 of the top 4 scores returning from last year the offseason marks the most significant changes in the McCormick roster in the team’s history.
Team manger Ulrich Ulriksen commented “We believe the greater turnover reflects the team moving to our new phase as we expand our regional focus consistent with our sponsor goals. In time we hope to make a PT promotion run centered around leaders from our focus nations as well as bring home the win at the Tour of America.“
The team welcomes Ivan Sosa and Adam Yates as leaders in hills and mountain terrain. Said Ulricksen, “We think there are plenty of attractive races for both Ivan and Adam and the Tour of America remains a key goal, we will sit down with both riders to determine whether one or both of them should take on this year’s course.”
Ulriksen also indicated that sprinter Marco Haller , who joined from Kraftwerk, could well feature in the Tour of America team, said Ulriksen, “we haven’t typically fielded a sprinter at the Tour, as we have tended to concentrate on the GC, but with a legend like Marco on our team, we have to consider it seriously.”
Other key additions are Nicolas Alejandro Cabrera who will add to the stage racing team, Justin Wolf for the time trials and Lorezno Rota who will rider in support of the team’s one leader continuing from last season, Jhonatan Narvaez
The team also added Barbier, Julajuj and Johannes Staune-Mittet as an investment in the team’s future. While Lorenzo Milesi will join on loan from King Power.
The team thanks departees Brandon McNulty, Charles Matte, Andrea Bagioli, Edoardo Affini and Maximilian Walscheid for their service to the team. Noah Granigan remains with the team but will ride on loan at Simba Cement – Tanga Fresh this season.
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| Fabianski |
Posted on 06-09-2024 23:12
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Grand Tour Specialist
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It still feels weird to see your team without the rider you fully committed to back in your CT days. And with McNulty gone, the focus likely also is shifted to races with little to no TTing, as Yates clearly prefers East Java, Maroc etc.
Speaking of Yates, I guess another change on the stage race leader position will come in 2 years at the latest, whereas with McNulty you had a leader for years to come.
But I honestly didn't have in mind anymore that your sponsors didn't want to focus on the U.S. alone. Hence, a Latino rider surely makes sense. I guess Sosa might get some hills training, resulting in yet another hybrid beast. With his energy stats, he'd be perfect for a GT - not with his TT and the usual GT routes, though.
Your sponsor focus also explains why you sold Bagioli instead of Narvaez, and with Sosa arriving I guess he'll pick up the lead puncheur role anyway. Cabrera is a nice addition, too - and Haller hopefully gets a shot at claiming the ToA stage win record on his own (currently tied with Pellizotti iirc).
All in all, I struggle a bit to see whether your team got stronger or weaker overall. Sure, Yates scored more than McNulty last year, but didn't spent 21 RDs in one race. Might be roughly similar in performance (given that McNulty would've lost his U25 points this year anyway). Sosa will certainly score more points than Boswell - but more than Boswell and Bagioli combined? With training maybe yes. So it's possible that you'll end up a bit higher than last year, in particular given that the PCT division doesn't look overly strong to me this year. But let's wait for trainings first...
Good luck in 2024, and in general on the path to achieving your new goals!
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| Nemolito |
Posted on 07-09-2024 11:30
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Classics Specialist
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Some stuff happened that nobody saw coming, and that's what makes transfer season even more fun. Definitely for the guy who got McNulty Hope Sosa will do great for you immediately, and he's definitely a great tandem to have together with Yates this year. Also liking the latest additions of Barbier and Julajuj 
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| Ulrich Ulriksen |
Posted on 07-09-2024 13:46
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 3264
Joined: 02-11-2010
PCM$: 300.00
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@Fab - I would agree with your assessment, team is probably a little weaker I would say with Haller a downgrade on Walscheid. But I think there is upside in Sosa and Narvaez with good planning and Yates should be points in the bank. And with Sosa/Simmons/Narvaez we have a nice set of regional core leaders for the next phase of our push. Ultimately Staune-Mittet replaces Yates or I trade both of them for a regional leader.
I see Sosa going down more the stage racer route to take advantage of his RC and because we have Simmons as a tough puncher. I think Sosa is a much better fit for the PCT than the PT. The ToA tends not to be TT heavy and there are lots of other races that fit him.
Definitely for the guy who got McNulty
I too am happy with McNulty and where he is and I think it is the right next step. And for the record I never said I wouldn't sell him, people just assumed I wouldn't.
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| Caspi |
Posted on 08-09-2024 08:16
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Neo-Pro
Posts: 371
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Rota was very keen on taking on a taking a step up despite it probably entailing that he’ll solely ride as a domestique.
We’ve already welcomed Granigan on the team, and I’m sure he’s going to be an excellent addition for the season to come.
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 10-09-2024 17:44
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 18187
Joined: 12-05-2012
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No team's identity should be totally bundled up with one rider (apart from Cio). I like the trade and the squad for the upcoming season. Cabrera an underrated rider!
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| DarkWolf |
Posted on 16-09-2024 05:56
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1025
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I am a bit envious on the addition of Sosa, although the departure of McNulty came as a surprise. But that's just me from the sidelines and I am certain you know your team better. Also I am fan of Alex Julajuj, due to my team's regional focus, and hopefully he can thrive here as much as he can, obviously. Good luck in the new season!
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| Ulrich Ulriksen |
Posted on 05-10-2024 03:14
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 3264
Joined: 02-11-2010
PCM$: 300.00
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@DW - excited to get Julajuj on board, he is a really solid rider, mabye someone we can talk about in a future offseason.
McCormick Pro Cycling announced Colombian Ivan Sosa will lead the team at the Tour of America. Manager Ulrich Ulriksen said that “we considered all the options with our two climbers, sending Ivan, sending Adam [Yates], sending both and sending neither, and in the end we felt like having Ivan lead the line was the best answer for both the Tour and our season overall. We are thrilled to have the strongest South American rider we have ever signed represent us at our most important race. Our goal is to do three seconds better than last year and win the race. We hope Ivan can use his abilities on the punchy climbs to gain seconds on his rivals and his toughness over 21 days to endure until the end.”
McCormick will once again send a strong line up to the Tour of America. Sosa will be supported on the climbs by Americans Sepp Kuss, Thomas Revard and Alex Hoehn who were all part of the squad that dominated in the mountains last year. This year will bring the three to a combined 13 Tour of America appearances with McCormick. Completing the climbing squad is Chilean Nicolas Alejandro Cabrera, who makes his first appearance in the race as McCormick continues its commitment to increasing its South American presence.
Completing the team will be rouleurs Greg Daniel and Gage Hecht, who both make their second appearance at the race with McCormick and sprinter Marco Haller, who is the making his first appearance with McCormick but has established himself as a Tour of America legend during his time with Kraftwerk.
Ulriksen said, “As a team that honors this race we felt like Marco had to ride. Greg and Gage will have a lot of work to do helping Marco out in the sprints, protecting Ivan on the flats and leading the way in the TTT. Gage has now reached his full potential and his abilities on every terrain mean we expect him to be key player for us on nearly every stage.
The team also recognized the contributions of Lawrence Warbasse. Said Ulriksen, “We decided it made sense for Lawrence to take on more of a leading role at other races this year and there just wasn’t room in his calendar for the Tour of America, we share his disappointment that he won’t be able to shine one more time in this great race, but we are confident he can have an impact in different ways this season.”
Ulriksen concluded, “With 5 US riders, a Chilean and a Colombian we have kept to our focus on giving American riders a chance to shine in the Tour of America, even if it isn’t mostly in the Americas this year. We would be thrilled to see these riders celebrating a tour win at the top of Mount Ranier in September.”
McCormick Tour of American Appearances by Rider (including 2024)
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| redordead |
Posted on 07-10-2024 07:13
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4881
Joined: 18-10-2017
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I can already see the Tour of (South) America coming next year 
"I am a cyclist, I may not be the best, but that is what I strive to be. I may never get there, but I will never quit trying." - Tadej Pogačar
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![imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg](https://imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg)
