May - El hombre Castaño shines in his own homeland
May was surprisingly not a month were Pirelli was looking to move further up the table - more the other way around. The team participate with mixed success in just two races, the one being the Spanish classic Subida al Naranco and the other being a short stage race in Luxemburg.
Carlos Castaño, the most prolific rider so far on the team, was simply amazing in his homeland. Carlos attacked at the final climb and no one could follow him, even though the competition was high. Unfortunately wasn't it enough to win since another star in the CT Jose Alarcon had pulled out a great move together with a couple of his Aker team mates earlier in the race. Carlos was 3 minutes faster than Alarcon on the climb, but clinching 2nd in such manners was still a pleasure to see. Carlos finishing second in his homeland after yet another wonderful performance by him
Luxemburg went rather well too, though Roche couldn't manage to beat the very best in the race - with Vespa star Ginanni winning. Still Roche managed to end as 4th, mainly because of a fabulous timetrial by him.
There will soon be a review over the racing in June, that has been a really strong period for the team after falling all the way down to 18th due to the few participations in may.
Guatamala, Transfagarasan, Giro del Capo, Tour de Beauce, Tour de Slovenie and GP of Wales are the races that the team has/is participating in the next month - stay tuned!
June part I - Massive Success despite missed goal in Romania
After seeing the team drop all the way down to 18th in the rankings were the sponsors not quite happy - far from. Thankfully did the riders respond to the critic that has been hanging over some of them, with a couple of stunning performances.
First up was the long and tough stage race Vuelta a Guatemala. We had build the team around sprinter Barzajev, who was clearly our best shot for glory since we lacked a man for the GC. He didn't bring us a stage win, despite some good performances in the mass sprints - Allan Davis was simply too good to be beaten but then others took up the fight.
Hubert Dupont and Nick Kinney won in completely different ways but it was none less enough to make the race a unexpected success.
Next up our perhaps most important race this year due to the "Must win" goal our sponsored demanded from us. In what might have been the strongest team we had fielded with Jurgen and Carlos among the 8 riders, were we ready to take Romania by storm in the mountainous one day classic Transfagarasan GP.
Carlos did a great job helping Jurgen on the tough climb, but despite our Belgian captain being the only one to follow the two mountain goats Alarcon and Rujano, did he only manage to end as fifth, last in a small group. It was slightly disappointing to see our goal be missed, since Jurgen could with better composure perhaps beaten the other riders in that sprint.
The team thankfully gave us a amazing respond in Giro del Capo, in what might have been one of the best performances Pirelli has yet given in a race.
Nicolas Roche have, besides his great 2nd place in Lugano, not been the success we had hoped for but with a strong team to back him up in Capo were the hopes for a better performance quite high. The first stage of the race saw a breakaway run away with the stage victory and Simone Masciarelli was so, so close to take an brilliant stage win to the team. He didn't, but it gave an indication of what there was to come from Pirelli.
Stage 2, we had both Lagana and Ianetti in the breakaway and despite their best intentions were Akers Rovira together with Matti Breschel and Saramotins too strong. Nicolas finished second in the favourite group, but the large gap up to the breakaway meant that it was suddenly Lagana and Ianetti who looked best for our GC hopes. Stage 3 was yet another success for the early breakaway and to our regrets did Roche not get any time on his competitors, despite winning the sprint in the group of the favourites.
The next stage changed everything. A attack by Matthew Busche and Bianchis De la Fuente caused to much devastation that the favourites were nowhere close to catch them. The Spaniard was too strong for Matthew, but our on-loan rider from Wikipedia did so well that he took second, both on the stage and in the GC, just one second after the resurgent De la Fuente. Nicolas and surprisingly Ianetti did almost just as well with the former moving up in the GC while Ianetti was amazingly to be found as the current fourth best rider.
Busche on his way to finish second in Capo
The final two stages were therefore welcomed with tension from me and the rest of the Pirelli - Alfa Romeo staff. It all went amazingly well. Roche drove a stunning timetrial, finishing third just a couple of seconds off the winner Augustyn while Busche didn't have any problems with defending his 2nd place. Ianetti suffered greatly but despite his non-existing climbing legs, did the Italian well enough to stay inside the top 10 in the GC, as 7th!
Everything looked perfect, though there were fears while looking at the bad weather for the final stage in the race. Nothing happened with our 3 lads, and Sergio Lagana' once again managed to sit in the right breakaway, defending the teams 1st place in the team GC. Nicolas even managed to defend the point jersey from Breschel and therefore finally winning something worth talking about.
With 3 men in top 10, and two competitions won was Capo a huge but unexpected success for the team and that could easily be seen in the CT rankings. Pirelli - Alfa Romeo went from 18th all the way up in top 10, way earlier than we could had hoped for! To be continued...
It's been a while since the HQ section has been updated, not because little has happened, far from.
Rycadinho, manager of the team, has been under heavy pressure from the sponsors, mainly Pirelli who believes he is responsible for the lack of wins and the trouble of achieving a must needed spot inside the top 10 of the division. Not only has his massive gamble with using much of the budget on newcomer Van den Broeck not really paid off, though the Belgian rider have been quite unlucky this term. The sponsors believes that the money would had been better used, especially in these dry economically times.
The heaviest critic on Rycadinho's management though lies another place. Nicolas Roche has always been a rider, that Rycadinho has been following and instead of spending energy on securing a good Italian name, was the Irish man quite much a unknown name in Italy. His season haven't helped on this, and it is far from sure how the sponsors will react if Roche and co. can't help the under pressure manager to secure the last goal of the season - a top 10 spot, as mentioned earlier.
One thing is defiantly sure, it is unrealistic to see Pirelli-Alfa Romeo pull out of their sponsorship of the team, simply because it will cost them too much money. But do expect to see Rycadinho being more restricted in the next transfer window, the sponsors defiantly want more to say or he will have to look after new sponsors for season 2014 and onwards.
A big Italian name could be the key for the manager to give his sponsors something to be happy about, though they don't hang around the trees. A friendly termination of the sponsor contracts would be another possible option, though it remains to see if anyone wants to provide Rycadinho the same funds that Pirelli and Alfa Romeo so far have done.
Pirelli - Alfa Romeo to see a change in sponsorship!
It's almost certain, but the continental outfit will for 2013 be sponsored by a sponsor who can tolerate manager Rycadinhos wish to have a team that doesn't focus on certain nationalities.
There have been much critic over the lack of a Italian star in his team, though it must be said that a lot of the riders are actually from Italy - though that's something the sponsors doesn't seem to acknowledge - hence the current uncertainty. It has been said that Pirelli and Alfa Romeo are prepared to fulfil their obligations towards Rycadinho, since they last year penned a 2-year deal with him, though this could change if there is another party who wants to provide enough funds.
According to our sources is Rycadinho not in a rush to find a new sponsor(s) for 2013, since he knows that Pirelli and Alfa Romeo can't pull out of the current deal. 2014 have on the other hand much more unknown variables that could play in, for example - IF the manager manages to get a name that the two Italian sponsors so much wish for, then we could see the team continue for season 2014 and onwards being named Pirelli - Alfa Romeo. The much more likely scenario is that a new sponsor will take up them mantle from Rycadinho and give him much more freedom, in exchange for good results.
Rumours of a bank of any sort, who is interesting to strengthen it's international value, is right now the most logically choice for a new sponsor for Rycadinho and his team.
First ever stagerace victory for Pirelli - Alfa Romeo is a reality!!
Ivan Santaromita has done the unthinkable. The rider who was so close to join his homeland cycling team USB in the last day of the transfer market managed to surprise everyone, including his ecstatic manager Rycadinho by winning Deutschland Tour thanks to clever and energetic riding.
Before the race were all hopes for a decent race on sprinter Barzajev, who despite during relative well suffered from all the breakaways that managed to stay out of reach - something that had big consequences for the race and made Ivans victory possible.
Ivan on his way to a hugely unexpected, but nonetheless a brilliant victory!
There isn't really much more to add except the feeling of relief over finally achieving that victory the team has been so close to in almost to years! We are not really in a shot for promotion, though this will surely give us a chance to end as one of the 10 best team in the division - something that was a clear target when the season began, but thanks to a turbulent year, have it been much tougher than expected to reach this goal.
The sponsors are not the only ones to share Rycadinho, the staff and of course the riders happiness about Ivans beatiful win, and it could mean that Pirelli-Alfa Romeo are ready to complete at least one more season as sponsors for Rycadinho's team, until the contract runs out in 2013.
Italian Double - Ianetti and Roche secures huge wins for Pirelli-Alfa Romeo!
They say that a picture tells 1000 words, so let's just end this update with the pictures of Ianetti and Roche, who with two outstanding performances has all but secured our top 10 CT target.
The unthinkable has happened.
- Manager Rycadinho has just released the following statement, were he confirms that the Italian based team will see a mayor change in sponsorship after a mixed season that eventually ended outside the big target - a top 10 place in the continental division. Here is what he has to say about the sudden breakdown between Pirelli, Alfa Romeo and himself:
"It's been two fantastic, but very hectic years, which has been full of great achievements. Unfortunately didn't our Italian sponsors not believe the team has moved enough forward this year, something me and my staff clearly think is wrong. We have achieved 3 huge wins, and were unlucky not to end a bit higher in the division. That's why the best solution is to end our relationship with Pirelli and Alfa Romeo, who I'm forever grateful for their support during the time we were together. I can already now say that my cycling project will continue, and with a new partner which will give us a solid economic foundation plus more freedom to evolve the team, though still with targets to be fulfilled The company is well known for being sponsors in other sports events, and I can wait to start this new journey together with ING, the huge bank company with it's roots in the Netherlands. More information will come soon, but once again let me express my gratitude towards mr. moratti who made my dream to have a cycling team possible, Pirelli for staying with us after Inter decided to pull out of the contract and of course Alfa Romeo who provided us some much need support to help Pirelli funding our team! Grazie Mile, but now it's time for a new adventure - more information will soon come...
To be continued...
It's a pleasure, that I Rycadinho can present to you all my new partner in the world of cycling.The ING Group is one of the largest cooperations by revenue, and is still going strong despite the current financial climate. They have for many years been sponsoring different sporting events, though it was their push to make Fernando Alonso a worldchampion together with former Formula One Car provider, Renault that for me left a strong impression on me. The people behind the sporting/event department in ING quickly messaged me, if there was a possibility to sponsor my cycling project in 2014. With Pirelli and Alfa Romeo out of the picture, after me and my staff couldn't provide them the much needed top 10 CT place, then it made way for ING to fill the gap they left. Here is some reasons why ING decided to give me another chance to reach the Pro Tour:
- We want even more global visibility, and cycling is a very global sport which is what we strife for. As of 2009, ING served over 85 million individual and institutional clients in more than 45 countries, with a worldwide workforce exceeding 100,000.
- With these numbers in mind, is the wish for us that Mr. Rycadinho continues his approach to hire the best riders he can get, though it wouldn't hurt us to see a couple of dutch riders in the group.
- We have therefore decided to sponsor Rycadinho and his cycling team for 2 years, with a option for another 2 years together with Nike, the American based company.
The team will therefore do it's best to strengthen itself during the upcoming transfer season, and I can already now say that most of our riders will get a renewal, as me and ING wants to keep the base from Pirelli-Alfa Romeo before we add that extra quality during the transfer market, that will hopefully see us turn into a contender for promotion: Jurgen Van Den Broeck has been an expansive investment for us, and I expect him to lead the team for another year were our target is to make Jurgen the winner we know he is. Nicolas Roche and Carlos Castaño will also be offered a contract extension, since I have high hopes in them. Barzajev, Ianetti, our two talents Puccio and Aru will definitely stay with us while our Colombian flavor will also be racing under my wings. There are others who will leave, like the wikipedia boys, but that will make room for new faces, and with Nike staying with us is it likely that a couple of Americans will be seen in the team, like Busche this year - especially taking our great relationship with Dave in mind.
The future contains many questions, but one thing is for sure.... ANFreeman and Nike has provided us with a brilliant new jersey, that represent the colours of ING perfectly. Our goal is to make it be known for one thing, success and together with my new partner will this be more than achievable! Enough talk, here it is - Team ING - Cycling Projects uniform for season 2013 and on wards!:
https://pcmdaily.c...ost_608622 is the adress for the newly-created webside for ING-Cycling Project. 2012 is over, and a new adventure will take place and all this can be followed in our new site. It will just like this one be updated regularly with transfer, race and other news/stuff during the year!
