The talented young Belgian has just boarded a flight in Brussels to fly to Spain to join the team for pre-season training having been sealed in the latest minutes. He comes in on a wage of 100,000 and was a fairly late move on our part.
We feel he'll settle into the team with ease and has already been in conversation with his countryman, Jules Hesters, who is another talented Belgian with the team. Our Belgian contingent is growing with Gerben Thijssen also going to be back here next season following his loan.
We see a long future for Yentl with the team. He has a few years in which to hone his skills and then he'll play a big part of our TTT squad while also being a strong supporting rider on the Flats.
The 22nd and last rider on our Roster for the 2022 season is experienced French stage hunter, Arthur Vichot. He's not quite at the peak of his powers as age has began to catch up with him but we still feel he has a lot to add to the team this season.
The 34yr old is still as aggressive as ever and has a hell of a kick to match. We hope that he'll bring an attacking riding style to our efforts in the hills this season where we lack a real leader. This freedom should suit Arthur nicely in what is likely to be his last season as a full professional cyclist.
Having arrived at our Headquarters earlier today, he is already sharing his experiences with our younger cohort and we can't wait to see him out on the road with the guys.
We are proud to reveal our full list of riders for the 2022 season.
The Team Management is happy with how the transfer window went and feels this is a very strong squad to solidify ourselves within the PCT division.
In the Mountains & Stage Races, we have a very obvious leader in Taaramäe. He is paid the big bucks and we will need him to perform as we know he is capable of. Conci is likely to be the other fairly big scorer in this department with his all-round ability complimented by his eligibility for U25 races this season. Mas will also have leadership opportunities but we expect less from him at this level.
We trust in the best Individual Rider in the CT last season to lead us in the Sprints again this season. Jakobsen had success last season at HC and C1 level and we see no reason that this can't continue last season. He has a great supporting cast too.
We're not stacked with pure Time Trialists but both of them have added aspects which make them even better. Cosnefroy had a fantastic season in the CT which included results at C1 level as well. We expect him to continue scoring well in the PCT. Thomas is another rider who ends up benefitting in TT/Flat races due to his involvement in the Sprints getting him on the right side of a split. We don't expect a huge season from him but he should contribute well.
Our obvious weakness compared to where we hoped we'd be stronger is in the Hills. Paez ends up with leadership which we were not expecting. We do believe that some of the PCT calendar does actually suit him better with races that aren't as tough but benefit the fast finishers.
As always, we also have a number of young riders on contract. Two of the best of these are out on loan while others continue their development with us this season.
Wait, what are cobbles?
FL
MO
HI
TT
ST
RS
RC
CB
SP
AC
FG
DH
PR
Rein Taaramäe
71
81
74
77
73
74
70
50
56
70
66
66
75
Enric Mas
69
78
77
68
74
74
77
56
60
77
73
70
68
Nicola Conci
71
77
74
77
76
75
78
56
63
68
63
71
77
Marc Soler
69
76
71
74
76
74
76
54
54
66
60
61
77
Ruben Fernandez
66
75
75
66
72
69
72
57
60
66
72
72
65
Nico Keinath
70
75
72
71
71
70
67
55
58
64
67
59
71
Andres Paez
73
72
77
68
74
70
73
58
73
76
76
65
68
Arthur Vichot
68
63
74
63
74
65
64
58
64
77
80
71
63
Fabio Jakobsen
74
59
67
59
75
73
81
73
80
80
67
68
69
Hugo Hofstetter
74
62
70
64
71
71
75
73
77
78
71
68
66
Benjamin Thomas
73
56
66
78
75
73
70
64
74
79
64
66
79
Benoit Cosnefroy
76
68
71
78
78
81
72
69
69
69
81
74
78
Jaime Castrillo
77
66
67
76
75
72
72
55
70
73
71
67
76
Jules Hesters
71
60
62
60
70
73
67
69
73
74
63
66
60
Julian Cardona
70
64
62
73
69
70
65
62
64
67
60
65
73
Leonardo Henrique Finkler
67
67
72
64
71
69
68
61
66
70
71
68
62
Henry Alberto Sam
69
65
65
69
70
68
67
58
66
69
72
68
70
Yentl Vandevelde
68
58
62
69
65
65
65
60
62
65
68
65
69
Luis Fernando Chapulin
67
65
69
60
70
72
68
64
67
71
71
67
65
Pau Miquel
67
66
69
58
70
72
68
61
63
65
65
67
58
Jake Stewart
71
62
69
68
67
71
63
69
70
70
66
67
70
Nickolas Zukowsky
68
63
69
70
70
69
69
61
70
71
77
66
71
Alexandr Ovsyannikov
72
61
68
64
74
72
79
74
77
76
71
73
64
Gerben Thijssen
73
61
62
60
72
69
76
64
77
79
65
64
60
*loaned in *loaned out
Team Stats (excl. Loanees):
Average Age: 26.7
Riders over age 29: 4
Riders not max: 9/22
Max Riders who developed with us: 9
Spanish Speakers: 9 Riders: 5 Riders: 4
It's simply a freakishly cool build you have made. Not just this season but over the past 2-3 seasons. I really admire both the patience and the endurance required - but it has paid off big time I think!
Marc Soler is as close to a perfect fit as anyone can get, and I love to see Hofstetter back where "he belongs". The only riders that hits they eyes are the additions of Keinath and Vichot who both in terms of level and age seems off - but I definately get why you picked them as you also need to have riders who statwise fit into plans.
Top level wise you aren't quite there yet, but depth wise and talentwise most certainly. Despite not having a top puncheur the two you have complement eachother to perfection with one being towards a difficult route, while the other is the more punchy finisher. Fabio Jakobsen with his decent leadout train is a perfect fit and Conci and Soler offer some very solid GC riders despite may be lacking a bit here and there to really shine. But in that regard Taaramäe is absolutely still a beast with that MO/TT combination. Also I'd say he's perfect for the PCT where he doesn't have to waste energy (which he doesn't have too much anymore) in Grand Tours.
I have alwys been a sucker for those TT'ers of yours. Thomas with his nice sprint, Castrillo with the amazing flat and decent sprint and Cosnefroy as the powerhouse who is also fairly competent moving upwards in the terrain.
I also love to see you picking up Finkler. He was very very close to receiving a bid from me before you put in that bid as he's easy to develop in 2 seasons and will max with very respectable stats. The other talents I don't know too much about, but knowing you they have been scouted to perfection to fit your strategy.
Can't say I expect promotion from the side, but that doesn't make me love it any less! Easily one of my favorite teams.
I definitely like your stage race team built around Rein, he should still be a great scorer in CT! I guess Mas and maybe Conci will get some chances to shine on their own as well, not looking forward to meeting them in C1 races
Your TT lineup is pretty strong for this year's PCT class as well I feel, seems like there aren't many top-level TTers left, and yours are pretty versatile as you wrote.
Jakobsen has already shown last year that he doesn't fear PCT competition at all, and having even more RDs in PCT now he should be a great scorer for you again! And him, Hofstetter and Ovsya could even do something useful on the (I guess) few cobbled races on your calendar
Besides cobbles, the hills are where you're lacking most, as you wrote above. Still, I guess you've got some great chances of surviving, and then building up on your fantastic young rider base! Well done!
Taaramae and Mas should be a very good combination uphill depending on where the TT's and hills are, and Jakobsen will have absolutely zero problems adjusting to this level. He's built for it already. The TTT squad is great too, especially with the division getting a bit weaker on that terrain this year.
I don't think you'll be near relegation, though you maybe need some luck for promotion. Taaramae is fantastic, but the stage racer class is pretty stacked in PCT right now, so you'll need to avoid some of the worst clashes with others in planning.
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy
Can't agree more with SotD, really love the long-term squad you have built here and must be so cool seeing it starting to really come to fruition now. Hope Rein can do it for you this year
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
I'm jealous of your Belgian talents Thijssen and Vandevelde
Very nice signings in the climbing department! And you had already a great core with Jakobsen, Mas and Cosnefroy to build on.
Good luck for the upcoming season!
MG - Lotto - Caloi
[MG] New Manager of the Year - PCM.daily Awards 2022
Hello all, we haven't provided the updates we wanted to throughout the season but we are here with the most important one of them all.
Our History
2021
Aramco DP
CT
2771
2nd
Promoted
2020
Aramco DP
PCT
1976
22nd
Relegated
2019
Euskaltel - Elior
CT
2114
2nd
Promoted
2018
Euskaltel - Elior
PCT
1738
25th
Relegated
2017
Euskaltel
PCT
1881
19th
2016
Euskaltel
PCT
1932
20th
2015
Euskaltel-Air France
PCT
1410
26th
2014
Euskaltel - Bavaria
CT
1594
4th
Promoted
We were on a yo-yo trend with our 2018 relegation followed by 2nd in the CT in 2019. We then experienced a 2nd relegation in 2020 followed by another bounce back promotion with 2nd last season.
It was time to buck the trend...
This is how it played out throughout the season:
Update
Rank
RDs
Points
PPRD
1
18th
9
111
12.33
2
9th
41
786
19.17
3
6th
63
1195
18.97
4
3rd
102
1889
18.52
5
2nd
134
2722
20.31
6
2nd
146
3115
21.34
Final
2nd
163
3390
20.80
which only means 1 thing...
P R O M O T I O N
After 9 seasons as a team, 3 in which we promoted from the CT and 2 in which we relegated down from the PCT, we have made it into the big time of World Cycling.
In the coming weeks, we will reflect on all of the successes of our season and announce the result of the discussions that we had with our sponsors.
I can just congratulate you on your huge achievement again
I honestly didn't see that coming; for me, you only had Taaramäe and Jakobsen as really good PCT leader, which I thought might be enough to stay up, but not more. Well, guess I was completely wrong
Jakobsen was amazing, being really consistent all year long - and Taaramäe was almost as successful as in his earlier years (not quite, of course, but it felt like that).
But I guess the main reason for your automatic promotion was Conci. I mean, 22nd place in PCT is just amazing given his current skillset, and I'm sure he'll get even better in the future. But also Cosnefroy and Thomas did a great job, with Mas maybe more on par with expectations. Your planning was just really smart, finding all the right races for your riders to score big - and the result is huge.
Good luck to you in PT, I'm looking forward to see how you'll get your squad PT-ready
Huge congratulations on promotion. The yo-yoing doesn't tell the story of the awesome squad building you were doing in that time and it all came together perfectly this year to result in back to back promotions. Can't quite believe how well you negotiated the relegations to still keep those developing riders in the squad and not lose the long-term project which has ended up so perfect. Amazing squad and a great season. Excited for how this turns into a PT outfit!
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant." [ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT] Xero Racing
I thought you had a decent chance of promotion before the season started. The way things turned out I think 2nd place is pretty much where you should have finished and you're probably well set for PT also
26 year old Dutch sprinter, Fabio Jakobsen joined the team 5 years ago as a 22yr old rookie back in 2018. He was signed for what we though was a bargain at 90,000 before taking a pay-cut the following season down to 55k.
In 2020, he went to the Pro Tour on loan and scored 182 points, which included multiple highlight results in Grand Tour sprints where he put himself on display for the first time.
He returned from his loan to be the team's lead sprinter, on a wage of 170k, in 2021 when we found ourselves in the Continental Tour. We couldn't have asked for a better season from the then 25yr old as he was the Best Individual Rider in the CT, scoring 649 points and leading the team to 2nd in the rankings and back to the PCT.
On our return to the PCT, we trusted in Jakobsen to lead us again and rewarded his previous success with a 320k wage. Our season would heavily rely on his success so let's see how he went.
Circulo de Juarez
Starting his season in Mexico where he was 4th in 2021, Fabio took 2nd on Stage 1 and 5th on Stage 3 on his way to 6th in the GC and 6th in the Points.
It was a solid start to the season for our sprinter.
Tour of Guadeloupe
4 stages in Guadeloupe proved very fruitful as Fabio took 2nd on Stage 1, 2nd on Stage 3 and then his first win of the season in the final stage (pictured above). All of this led to a first GC win of the season in combination with the Points classification.
Baltic Chain Tour
A surprising start to the tour resulted in Fabio winning the Stage 1 Prologue.
He would go on to win a 2nd stage in the Baltics on Stage 3 followed by 6th in Stage 4. He would go on to take 2nd in the GC and winning the Points.
La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
Three stages for Fabio to target in Gabon and he won the first of these, being Stage 2.
Another race with 2 stage wins with the 2nd of these coming on Stage 4 with 5th on Stage 3 falling between these wins. Despite it not being a race he could win overall, he took 2nd in the Points to make up for it.
Deutschland Tour
His final big points haul of the season came in Germany where he finished in the 4 sprint stages in 4th, 6th, 5th and 2nd. All of this resulting in 2nd in the Points.
One Day Races
He was, generally, less successful in one day races where he was 9th in the Great Ocean Road Classic, 11th in Berlin ProRace, 11th in Veenendaal - Veenendaal, 9th in Torshavn GP and 17th in Philadelphia International Championship.
His stand-out results being:
Circulo de Juarez
HC
Stage 1
2nd
Tour of Guadeloupe
C1
Stage 1
2nd
Tour of Guadeloupe
C1
Stage 3
2nd
Tour of Guadeloupe
C1
Stage 4
1st
Tour of Guadeloupe
C1
GC
1st
Tour of Guadeloupe
C1
Points
1st
Baltic Chain Tour
C1
Stage 1
1st
Baltic Chain Tour
C1
Stage 3
1st
Baltic Chain Tour
C1
GC
2nd
Baltic Chain Tour
C1
Points
1st
La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
C1
Stage 2
1st
La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
C1
Stage 4
1st
La Tropicale Amissa Bongo
C1
Points
2nd
Deutschland Tour
PTHC
Stage 5
2nd
Deutschland Tour
PTHC
Points
2nd
Overall a marvellous season for the Dutchman who finished with 5 stage wins spread across 3 races in HC and C1 as well as a GC Win, a 2nd in the GC, and 2 Points classifications wins.
All of this accumulated in 715 points in the 2022 season resulting in him finishing 10th in the PCT Individual Rider Rankings, the 3rd highest scoring sprinter in the PCT division. Our highest scoring rider of the season.
After the team has enjoyed their celebrations and some time off, we will be entering discussions with Fabio about his role going into the 2023 season.
Edited by Luis Leon Sanchez on 08-06-2023 15:35
Recruited from Evonik during the latest transfer window, the 35yr old Estonian Stage Racer is the only leader this season who didn't spend any of his time developing with us.
He was brought in to do a job and lead us in Stage Races and Mountains where we didn't have top quality. We did however have strong support available in the form of Conci, Mas, Soler and Fernandez. We needed this bet to pay off for us so let's reflect on his season as a whole.
Vuelta al Pais Vasco
His season would start in Spain where his first contribution was directing to the team to 4th in the opening TTT.
It was an unusual race for us given the presence of hills in the route which actually saw Conci excel and Rein playing the supporting role in the final stages.
As a lieutenant, Rein controlled the race on the final day which gave Conci the platform to Win! Individually, it was 10th for Rein in the GC.
Vuelta a Colombia
It was a very challenging 2nd outing for Rein in PTHC where he struggled to crack the Top 10 on any of the stages and would only come away with 13th in the GC.
Tour de Romandie
A perfect start to 6 days in Switzerland with a TTT victory on the opening stage.
First stage win of the season for him in Stage 3 and he was in Yellow to do it! A big step towards the GC.
2nd in the Stage 5 TT was enough for him and resulted in a WIN for Rein in the Tour de Romandie!
International Osterreich Rundfahrt
It was a fairly anonymous race from Rein in Austria, here we see him in his NC jersey in the ITT.
But anonymity doesn't always reflect the performance as he finished 3rd in the GC!
Tour de Suisse
No outstanding stage results in Switzerland this time round with 8th on Stage 6, 12th on Stage 2 and 12th in the Stage 7 TT.
But consistency where it matters meant 7th in the GC.
Tour de Vineyards
A trip to the most beautiful country in the world for the team saw success with a win the final stage TTT combined with 5th in the decisive Stage 3 resulting in 2nd in the GC for Rein.
Bayern Rundfahrt
The final race of the season for the Estonian and he was fairly anonymous again finishing 7th on Stage 3 and not making the Top 20 in either of the TTs. He still managed 9th in the GC.
Stand-out Results:
Tour de Romandie
C1
Stage 1 TTT
1st
Tour de Romandie
C1
Stage 3
1st
Tour de Romandie
C1
Stage 5
2nd
Tour de Romandie
C1
GC
1st
Int. Osterreich Rundfahrt
HC
Stage 1
5th
Int. Osterreich Rundfahrt
HC
GC
3rd
Tour de Suisse
PTHC
GC
7th
Tour de Vineyards
C1
Stage 3
5th
Tour de Vineyards
C1
Stage 5 TTT
1st
Tour de Vineyards
C1
GC
2nd
Despite managing just the 1 stage win on a road stage all season, it was a successful one for the Estonian. This sole stage win came in the Tour de Romandie where he also took his lone GC win. He was a key part of 2 TTT stage wins which supported GC aspirations also. 2nd in New Zealand and 3rd in Austria rounded out a really solid, consistent season.
As a road captain, he was also key. He was twice outperformed by the young Nicola Conci including in Pais Vasco where Rein guided the Italian to the GC win. The captaincy on and off the road combined with sharing his experiences really led the team to where we ultimately finished.
606 points for Taaramae and 18th in the Individual Rider Standings was his reward. Although not the highlight of his long and industrious career, guiding us to 2nd in the PCT and experiencing success of his own only adds to his legacy as one of the true legends of World Cycling.
We will be commencing discussions with Rein shortly as to his and our plans for the 2023 season in the PT. Whether or not he will remain onboard to coach and support our youngsters in navigating the pressures of the PT, we have not yet discussed but this will be part of the talks.
We have a strong set of talents who may not be PT level winners but they will all be riders capable of providing support to our leaders in various terrains.
Thijssen and Ovsyannikov return fully developed. The Belgian will be a secondary sprint leader this season, riding where our primary leader isn't present. Ovsya is currently our strongest cobblestone rider, his role this season hasn't been confirmed yet.
Hesters will be able to continue his development and provide support in our sprinting department also. Cardona will be able to do similar as part of our TTT set-up and Finkler in the Hills.
Sam and Vandevelde move into Lvl 3 and will be an important part of our TTT set-up in the future. De La Cruz and Miquel will be key to our Puncheur team, the latter to play a vital role as our only young Spanish talent at this time.
As the team prepares for the new season, and our first in the Pro Tour, we have started going through the motions.
Here is how it went...
2022 Wage
New Wage
Difference
Fabio
Jakobsen
320,000
300,000
-20,000
Enric
Mas
275,000
250,000
-25,000
Nicola
Conci
155,000
175,000
+20,000
Gerben
Thijssen
50,000
160,000
+110,000
Benoit
Cosnefroy
150,000
150,000
-
Alexandr
Ovsyannikov
55,000
140,000
+85,000
Andres
Paez
125,000
120,000
-5,000
Hugo
Hofstetter
85,000
85,000
-
Benjamin
Thomas
85,000
80,000
-5,000
Marc
Soler
80,000
75,000
-5,000
Yentl
Vandevelde
100,000
65,000
-35,000
Jaime
Castrillo
55,000
60,000
+5,000
Luis Fernando
De La Cruz Chapulin
60,000
60,000
-
Ruben
Fernandez
60,000
50,000
-10,000
Jules
Hesters
50,000
50,000
-
Julian
Cardona
50,000
50,000
-
Leonardo Henrique
Finkler
60,000
50,000
-10,000
Henry Alberto
Sam
50,000
50,000
-
Pau
Miquel
60,000
50,000
-10,000
Rein
Taaramäe
550,000
Released
Nico
Keinath
50,000
Released
Arthur
Vichot
50,000
Released
Some riders are now being paid more and some less. We are especially grateful for Jakobsen who took a light pay cut despite playing a key role in our back-to-back promotion. Our top Spaniard, Mas, also took a light cut to accommodate the necessary incomings. Vandevelde also has a more accommodating wage.
Large increases for Thijssen and Ovsyannikov was to be expected given they have completed their development. Conci with a smaller increase which is also unsurprising given the season that he had.
We unfortunately say good bye to Rein Taaramäe who played a big part in our success this season both with his results but also his team captaincy and leadership on and off the road. We did offer to keep him in a supporting role for this season but an agreement could not be reached.
Keinath and Vichot also ended up spending just the 1 season with us but, given it resulted in promotion effort, we have no complaints and therefore thank both of them for their efforts and wish them the best with retirement or one last season.
Transfer Availability Maybe:
Gerben Thijssen
Alexandr Ovysannikov
Andres Paez
No:
Everyone else - maybe a couple available for loan
In Summary
We are pleased with how renewals went and were able to hold onto all of our key riders and talents without suffering too much financial pain.
This leaves us with 19 riders including a plethora of talents who should be able to stay with us and continue their development in our colours.
We have a healthy chunk of available cap space to target the riders we feel can keep us up this season and set us up for success in the future, which has always been a priority.
Team Boss, Luis Leon Sanchez, looks forward to discussions, negotiations and transfer battles with his fellow managers.
Belgian Talent 
Arthur Vichot 
Taaramäe. He is paid the big bucks and we will need him to perform as we know he is capable of. 
Conci is likely to be the other fairly big scorer in this department with his all-round ability complimented by his eligibility for U25 races this season. 
Mas will also have leadership opportunities but we expect less from him at this level.
Jakobsen had success last season at HC and C1 level and we see no reason that this can't continue last season. He has a great supporting cast too.
Paez ends up with leadership which we were not expecting. We do believe that some of the PCT calendar does actually suit him better with races that aren't as tough but benefit the fast finishers.
Aramco DP
R 
La Tropicale Amissa Bongo 
Tour de Romandie 
International Osterreich Rundfahrt 
Tour de Vineyards 
