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[PCT] Aegon - Lavazza 2015
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| Shonak |
Posted on 16-05-2015 21:38
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Tour de France Champion
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Quite a team overhaul with dropping & selling some riders but looks like the first signings bring a much wanted(?) change with them, looking at Groenewegen's introduction. Vandewalle a real nice signing for 50k.
Edited by Shonak on 16-05-2015 21:41
"It’s a little bit scary when Contador attacks." - Tommy V
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| roturn |
Posted on 18-05-2015 06:03
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Team Manager
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Last couple of riders finish our 2015 transfer season
Some more changes in our squad for the 2015 PCT season happened yesterday. From the Free Agent market we signed contracts with experienced Italian Alessandro Bazzana, who is strengthening our depth in the hilly terrain. He is supposed to belong to some kind of attacking trio with Villella and Thurau as we miss the one big leader. Another FA signing is the Belgium Serge Pauwels. The 32 year old alrounder will be of great help in many ways. He is a decent climber and time trialist and can help our younger riders as road captain.
 Alessandro Bazzana (31) - 4.100 exp - 50,000€ - Puncheur
| FL | MO | HI | TT | STA | RES | REC | COB | SP | ACC | FI | DH | PRL | | 74 | 64 | 73 | 63 | 74 | 72 | 72 | 68 | 69 | 74 | 75 | 65 | 63 |
 Serge Pauwels (32) - 4.100 exp - 90,000€ - Alrounder
| FL | MO | HI | TT | STA | RES | REC | COB | SP | ACC | FI | DH | PRL | | 70 | 74 | 70 | 74 | 73 | 71 | 72 | 57 | 58 | 54 | 72 | 63 | 74 |
We also did some last minute trades and loans. First we want to welcome back Florian Scheit. The young German was already part of our team in 2012 but was always struggling to develop in the best and quickest way. We want to give him the chance this year to finally make the big step. He replaces his country man Maximillian Schachmann, who was actually renewed due to his German NC but in the end he is learning a lot more in the PT, where he will take his last step riding on a loan deal for Venchi. Last but not least the other way around we sealed the signing of Italian time trialist Alan Marangoni, who strenghtens our Italians a bit.
Alan Marangoni (31) - 4.100 exp - 50,000€ - Time Trialist
| FL | MO | HI | TT | STA | RES | REC | COB | SP | ACC | FI | DH | PRL | | 71 | 57 | 63 | 74 | 67 | 70 | 66 | 56 | 59 | 68 | 71 | 64 | 70 |
 Florian Scheit (24) - 3.50 exp - 50,000€ - Puncheur
| FL | MO | HI | TT | STA | RES | REC | COB | SP | ACC | FI | DH | PRL | | 65 | 67 | 71 | 57 | 70 | 69 | 65 | 50 | 64 | 67 | 72 | 65 | 57 |
Maximillian Schachmann (23) - 4.02 exp - 50,000€ - Puncheur - Loaned to Venchi
| FL | MO | HI | TT | STA | RES | REC | COB | SP | ACC | FI | DH | PRL | | 65 | 66 | 73 | 56 | 72 | 68 | 63 | 58 | 68 | 76 | 70 | 75 | 56 |
In total this means a squad of 22 riders of 4 Nations: 7 Dutch, 5 Italians, 5 German, 5 Belgiums. Our main focus surely might be the mountains with Keizer, Aru, Olivier. But also time trialing (Schädlich, Dumoulin, Boom, 10x72+) are important in 2015. The cobbled team around Vanmarcke and Nooytens was already strong in the 2014 PT races. This years PCT does not look much easier with several big names appearing to go a step down. But surely we want to fight for the top spots with this duo.
Sprinting wise we surely improved. With Groenewegen we have a strong sprinter, who possible even can fight for wins. He will need another year in the PT though, which is planned for 2016 to make the final step. Supporting him are Alex Krieger, who will get several chances on his own as well and Kristian Sbaragli, our Italian talent.
We have no real hilly leader this year, but a nice depth. Lars Boom will be our strongest rider in the hills probably. He though might aim for the time trial races the most to play his alround card, whereas Björn Thurau and Davide Villella are our biggest hopes for some points in the hills. Both are aggressive riders and strong roleurs. Second one will be even stronger next season actually.
Of those 22 riders, 7 are not maxed yet plus Maximillian Schachmann. Except for Bovenhuis, Scheit and Groenewegen those will max out after the season and with our goal to promote immediately we should be much stronger in our next PT campagne to stay in the highest division.
Our provisional 2015 squad (pre-training)
Edited by roturn on 18-05-2015 06:04
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| CountArach |
Posted on 18-05-2015 13:09
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Grand Tour Champion
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I've been looking to sign Pauwels for a couple of seasons now. A solid domestique though I think you may have overpaid for him.
I worry that Keizer may not score quite as well as you hope, given that there are only going to be so many races which suit him. He is going to struggle against the huge number of climbers this year and will only do well in races that also include a TT. Still, you look promotion quality.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 22-11-2024 23:46
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| cio93 |
Posted on 18-05-2015 13:16
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If Ciolek scores as many points more than Groenewegen as Daniel scores less than Vanmarcke, and if Kelderman scores as many points more than Boom as Nerz scores less than Keizer...then we have the advantage of exactly 1 Demare. 
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| roturn |
Posted on 18-05-2015 13:16
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I actually hope Keizer will do well this year. 
Pauwels surely is overpaid a bit. But it was more or less what I could have offered him and so I highered as much as possible. 5k more and you might have gotten him.
He combines the needed climbing and TT for my team this season.
@ Cio; Far too many if`s. Plus you seem to forget Schädlich.
Edited by roturn on 18-05-2015 13:17
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| Avin Wargunnson |
Posted on 18-05-2015 13:24
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Watch out, Keijzer is receiving some mountain training. 
Nice team Roturn, good luck in promotin fight!
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| knockout |
Posted on 18-05-2015 14:31
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Grand Tour Champion
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Strong squad for sure. Will definitely be a contender for the promotion spots.
Will surely follow your team rather closely and if it's just because I have to decide which of your riders will follow LLS and Geschke....
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Margh Norway |
Posted on 18-05-2015 18:31
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Sprinter
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Nice roster after an incredible rebuilding effort. The furture will be bright for this team, but I wouldn't bet to much on Aegon when it's about promotion... though I might change my mind after these guys have returned from pre season training camp.
Gratz to the Groenewegen signing, he may win his first Grand Tour stages in 2016.
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| roturn |
Posted on 22-05-2015 15:23
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Team Manager
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Leaders
Let`s start with our top riders. Martijn Keizer is the unquestioned leader of the team and should be a very strong rider on PCT level. After last year`s PT performance, it is his obvious goal to bring the team back to the biggest races in cycling. So he decided to work a lot harder in the offseason to be able to challenge even the best in this year`s PCT field, which seems to be not much easier than last year. His weakness in the shorter climbs, he is compensating with great climbing skills as also his big advantage in the fight against the clock. Can he deliver the team the first ever GC win in its 4th season?
Second leader is Sep Vanmarcke. The cobbler convinced the team with several top results in last year`s PT classics. One division lower he is supposed to fight for wins in those even though the competition is not that easy neither.
Both riders need some good scoring this year and we are very confident to see them delivering.
Co-Leader
Lars Boom deserves his own category here. The experienced Dutch was leading the team since the debut in 2012. And even though the biggest scoring is no longer on his shoulders, the team is hoping for some great results. His allrounder skills should make this possible. A pretty decent puncheur with a strength in time trials used to deliver him several results in recent years. And while not being the best cobbler, his skills on the paves were shown in the past as well including a win in the E3 Prijs.
Climbers
Fabio Aru is new in the team and should be good to go for some nice performances. Our co-sponsor Lavazza asked for a good Italian signing and here he is. He might (yet) not be able to challenge the best, but he is still young.
Daan Olivier was with the team for 2 years now and while not being fully maxed out, he is now able to lead some races. This season should be a nice impression on things to come. Next year he will make his last step then.
In many races, they will be supporting Keizer, but both surely get some freedoms to fight for the GC, KoM`s or stages.
Sprinters
After a year without much sprint power, we surely hope to have improved there.
Dylan Groenewegen is definitely our biggest signing for the season. Already a decent sprinter to eventually win a stage here and there, he is not done with his development and while we are not able to max him out this season, he is an investment for the future. Another highlight for him surely is Avenir, where he will fight for stage wins against Volkswagen`s Rick Zabel.
Alexander Krieger is our 2nd sprinter for the season and it`s his first full developed year. He slowly did improve and now became a good enough sprinter to fight for the top spots. And you mustn`t forget, that he is only 25 years of age.
Both are supported by Kristian Sbaragli this year. The Italian is a great leadout rider and will even progress one more time. But as last year already has shown, he is capable of good results himself with the ability to survive smaller hills and his motor engine on the flat. Also in the cobbled races he will be of huge support or even go for himself?
Puncheurs
We honestly don`t have as good puncheurs as in the last season. But we have an interesting trio here. Davide Villella and Björn Thurau are very similar riders. Both have a nice kick in the hills and love to attack late in the race. So we hope that their aggressiveness works here and there.
Also Alessandro Bazzana, who was added for this kind of racing, is expected to be seen in many stages. It`s a perfect breakaway trio actually and all of them do pretty well in sprints of smaller groups. First one even makes another step next year.
Lieutenants
Our time trial squad is hopefully winning a lot this year. An important part of this are Lucas Schädlich and Tom Dumoulin. In especially first is hoped to also get higher GC`s in some races. For a TTT those two are excellent support for our leaders.
Sven Nooytens is just like last year the important man next to Sep Vanmarcke. He clearly is a great domestique in all cobbled races and can ride for 2 riders there. But just like in 2014 he can ride in the top10 himself on a good day.
Serge Pauwels is our allround weapon. Not only he will support Keizer in the mountain races a lot. He also is a big part of all TTT events this year. His skills are a perfect match in almost any team and we are happy to have signed him this FA season.
Helpers & Talents
The last 6 riders riding with us in 2015 are our helpers and talents. With our focus on time trial races, it`s no big surprise that we added 3 more time trialists this off-season. Stef Clement is the most allround guy of those being also a decent help in the hilly races. Kristof Vandewalle and Alan Marangoni are pure TTT support but all of them are free to join breakaways a lot of course.
Last three are our talents. Frederik Frison though the most experienced of those and already a nice TT support. Florian Scheit celebrates a comeback here after being with the team in 2012 already. He is some kind of slow developer though and is expected to support the team in hilly races mainly. Jasper Bovenhuis is a very nice addition and was actually the first rider to sign a contract for us in 2015. He is a nice allrounder with biggest strength surely the cobbles. He is supposed to be a very important rider already supporting Sep Vanmarcke in the big classics.
Loaned to other teams
Two riders were loaned to other teams this year.
Thomas Koep came quite surprising after he was fully developed before this season and was expected to be a nice domestique. Though after the signing of Serge Pauwels, he asked us to eventually lead a team in the Continental division to come back with more self-confidence next year. Luckily he found a nice spot at Carlsberg where he can ride on his own in the mountain races. We are happy to welcome him back after the season.
Maximillian Schachmann seems to be some kind of on-off relationship with us. Being part of the team since 2012 already, he has not raced a lot for the team and even though he became German NC in the last season, he wanted to finally develop into the rider, he wants to be. So we decided to finally give him the PT experience he needs to max out and he rides with Venchi in 2015.
With the experienced team core around Keizer, Boom and Vanmarcke we hope to immediately go back to the Pro Tour. With the climbing depth behind Keizer and the added riders, we are sure to be able to challenge for this top 5 spot in PCT.
Edited by roturn on 23-05-2015 18:01
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| cio93 |
Posted on 22-05-2015 15:37
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No surprise for me, and I'm still optimistic I can beat you.
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| SotD |
Posted on 22-05-2015 15:46
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World Champion
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I absolutely love those cards. I am actually trying to make some of my own, but I really suck. Any chance that I could loan your platform and Work from there?
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| Heine |
Posted on 22-05-2015 16:19
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Grand Tour Specialist
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Really great graphics! The cards look awesome
Keizer with Mon training looks scary  You will imo be right up there in the promotion fight
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| Ian Butler |
Posted on 22-05-2015 16:42
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Tour de France Champion
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Beautiful presentation of the squad 
And, of course, beautiful squad, too! |
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 22-05-2015 16:54
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The card layout is brilliant. I specifically like Thomas Koep's card
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| ggDonovan |
Posted on 22-05-2015 18:13
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Still going to Vancouver?
Nice team!
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| roturn |
Posted on 26-05-2015 09:02
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Team Manager
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Thanks for the feedback. Much appreciated.
Aegon - Lavazza gets wildcards for Pro Tour races
Even as relegated team, we will make a comeback to the highest level of cycling in 2015. The team management had asked for the full PT wildcard package. But unfortunately the Grand Tours were overbooked this year. So unfortunately there will be no chance for us to compete with the best in those races.
But the team still got a couple of opportunities to perform in the Pro Tour.
Early in the year the Tour of Qatar awaits our squad in January. The sprinter race, which includes a short prologue should be perfect for our squad and we hope to impress there.
Midseason eventually our biggest PT project: The Criterium du Dauphine Libere. The stage race counts as perfect preperation for the Tour de France. For our team it`s the perfect opportunity to test the climbing legs ahead of the Tour d'Andorra. We would lie if we`d say we have no ambitions in this PT race. Mountains, individual time trial and team time trial. Perfect match.
Next to those stage races we also get the chance to ride two classics. The GP Moscow should suit our sprinters and we want to show our colours there. A bit later the Copenhagen-Malmo TTT could become a highlight with our TTT squad. It`s said to be some planning difficulties though with clashing races.
And last but not least we will end our season with the cycling monument Giro di Lombardia. It`s a nice race for our Italian co-sponsor Lavazza and gives our young puncheurs the chance to learn from the best.
We want to thank the MG UCI for giving us the chance to race those high class races. |
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| Ian Butler |
Posted on 26-05-2015 09:04
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Tour de France Champion
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Congrats on the wildcards! You have been accepted in some nice races, hope you do well there |
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| viking90 |
Posted on 27-05-2015 15:53
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We will both ride in Tour of Qatar and Giro di Lombardia,hope we as PCT teams can stay together and cooperate and thrash the PT teams |
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| roturn |
Posted on 27-05-2015 16:23
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Team Manager
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I have realized this as well. Let me help you in Lombardia and I get your support in Qatar then.
I actually think though Ahlstrand will kick my ass not only in Qatar this season. 
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| viking90 |
Posted on 27-05-2015 21:15
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roturn wrote:
I have realized this as well. Let me help you in Lombardia and I get your support in Qatar then.
I actually think though Ahlstrand will kick my ass not only in Qatar this season.
I hope Ahstrand will grab some nice results this season, and I guess him and Groenewegen will have some nice battles in the future |
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