@hillis91: Yeah, I'm especially happy with Paillot, as his arrival means we should be competitive in all races this year. We'll never be the favourite, but always have a shot at a decent result, which is a nice thought
@knockout: Yeah, seeing Kristoff's demand in renewals and the significant raise sprinters got in general, I'm very happy with that wage. Eventhough he's old, it was a big, big surprise to see no other team go above us at 240k.
@viking90: Yeah, with a very limited budget pre-transfers, I figured it was time to cash in. Tiller and Anderberg are indeed similar riders, I too hoped to have both, but that quickly proved impossible with the wages rising quickly
@cio93: Suspect that was the case for a couple of other sprinters as well. Kristoff for sure was one of those, eventhough I never got the chance to offer him a contract in the second and third round, as he got offended in the first round. Guarnieri, Ciolek and other sprinters seem fairly cheap coming from the FA this season, with most teams prioritizing other terrain, at least looking at the FA market.
Unexpected Turn Of Events
Eventhough our transfer season wasn't close to be finished after signing of sprinter Gerald Ciolek from the FA market and the already mentioned departures and arrivals, we must admit we thought the following days would be quieter. We were wrong.
As part of the Teuns transfer, French climber and potential future Grand Tour winner Warren Barguil joined the team. We were super happy bringing Wawa in, as his sensational backup stats combined with his love for the mountains makes him an exciting prospect, both for this season and coming years.
Though, on the very same day as he arrived the team, Roman and Moser - Sygic approached us and asked for the possibility to buy Barguil. He also revealed Moser - Sygic had made offers for Wawa earlier this transfer season, when he belonged to Team Cerveceria Costa Rica.
To make a long story short, we said Barguil wasn't for sale. Then it got complicated and creative, as Moser - Sygic nevertheless proposed several possible deals for Wawa. In the end a deal was made, seeing puncheur Petr Vakoc and sprinter Daniel Vesely joining Aker - MOT, and we also recieved 230k for the trade.
We wish Wawa all the best with Moser - Sygic, and we hope he will prove the rider we hoped he would be for us, and bring the Czech team a lot of success.
That's by no means the only transfer we've done since our last update, eventhough it's obviously the biggest one. Below follows the riders who have joined Aker - MOT since our last update.
Petr Vakoc is a very strong puncheur, having developed over the years at Moser - Sygic. Now he steps out of his comfort zone to join us, and we're excited to see what he's capable of. Together with Beltran he'll share leadership on the hills, where we're confident our team will be more competitive this season compared to 2017.
Though, admittedly Vakoc struggled quite a bit in 2017, playing second fiddle to wunderkid Sagan. We hope he takes the chances he'll get in Aker - MOT with both hands and does better than his 2017. Top 15s in classics and hilly stage races are seen as realistic goals for the young Czech, and sharing leadership with Beltran should also ease the pressure a bit.
Daniel Vesely has shown that he's able to shine when the very best sprinters in the world are absent. That's a sign of quality, as it's by no means a given to challenge for wins among other 80-82 sprinters. We're yet to decide on his schedule for 2018, as we also need to take Ciolek's and SHE's season plans into consideration, but it could very well be that we give him the chance to shine were we expect the sprinter's field to be absolute world class. Thus, the odd top 10s will be seen as a success.
The deal we got bringing Tom Scully is without any question a bargain deal for us. Compal - Merida has been desperate this transfer season to offload some of their leaders due to the wage cap demands for a continental team, and we're very happy to bring in Scully as a result of that. He has all the tools needed for being a great leadout rider, and that's exactly what we hope he proves to be, giving Ciolek the perfect positions for the sprints.
With Souheil Khederi we're happy to announce another African signing for the team. The Tunisian will be a key asset for our hilly campaign, but he also looks set to ride a lot of the mountainous stage races and at least one Grand Tour, as we are somewhat lacking in the domestique department for mountains, after all our rider sales.
Azzedine Lagab looks set to go straight into our team for the cobbled classics. The Algerian is a strong rouleur excelling on cobbles, and we expect to see him play an important role for Trentin, who is our clear leader on such terrain.
Edited by ember on 26-07-2018 05:59
The end of the transfer season is coming closer and closer, and we've used the opportunity to bring in Jan Dakteris from Evonik - ELKO in a trade, seeing cobbler Damien Gaudin go the other way.
No question it makes our support for Trentin weaker on the cobbles and in the ToNE, but we still expect our team to be up for the task and do well for our Italian numero uno.
With Dakteris we bring in a key part to our team, now that we signed Gerald Ciolek earlier this transfer season. Dakteris will together with Scully be his leadout riders, preparing the final kilometers for our German sprinter, which hopefully means he can sprint for wins. We're well aware it will be difficult to form a train against the teams of the absolute world class sprinters, but we're still optimistic we'll get to see our train in work on several occasions this season.
We hope Janis Dakteris proves to be the perfect leadout rider, launching Ciolek and his last leadout rider in a perfect position. That's at least our goal, but as we all know, sprints are complicated. Though, Dakteris has valuable experience from his former team Evonik - ELKO, where he often rode in support of Michael Van Stayen. That should be valuable joining our team, as admittedly last season we didn't do many leadouts. And we did, it was with Guldhammer as the stand out leadout rider (see last year's final stage in the Vuelta).
In other news, we expect to sign one more rider from the FA market before we finish our transfer season and can present the team for 2018, which no doubt is looking quite different to previous years.
Edited by ember on 26-07-2018 18:14
Smart move IMO... I'm not sure Ciolek will get a train that often, but if planned well enough he would have sometimes, and then it is needed to have those strong flat riders with a decent sprint.
The plan is indeed to see him being led out many times. Of course not in Qatar, Moscow and those races, but with three pretty good sprinters, it could well be time to send Ciolek to races where the sprint competition is expected to be less, and let Vesely and/or SHE test the waters in the most sprint friendly races, except for Qatar, of course, where all PT sprinters in general will line up
But we shall see, there's definitely some race planning to do!
Dakteris is a nice rider who was quite important in my team set-up for a couple of years as both a leadout and a working body on the cobbles. Hope he does well for you!
@knockout: Yeah, hopefully we get the train to work for Ciolek. Last time (with Kristoff) I tried we weren't successful at all, as I was hoping Kristoff back then could get a train in the biggest races. He didn't, and the "train" was for no use. Fingers crossed we do better now, with Dakteris in a key role
@whitejersey: Happy to see them join, eventhough it's not a given who had the best part of that deal. To be honest, I think both Romand and I felt both won doing the deal. My team was not very balanced with Barguil, as it gave too many leaders for the mountains. Now I just have too many leaders for all terrains
And I'm sure Barguil has huge potential for Roman, that was the reason I signed him after all. With 79 mountain and brilliant backup stats, he could be similar or potentially better than Olivier last season.
Then the big thing with him is when you start to train him, as his backup stats really gives him a shot at becoming a great stage racer and Grand Tour contender, I think.
For the look of the presentation, a thank you goes to roturn and Aegon - Lavazza, as we've stolen their layout.
Team Presentation: Depth Is Key
It has been a very busy transfer season. We sold most of the Norwegians we've raised since the very start of their careers and we've brought in riders from all around the world. Seeing the team and where we're at now that transfers are done, there's no doubt we went for depth over quality considering the team's leaders. That's visible looking at the riders wages, with Matteo Trentin being paid the most with € 450,000, as our top earner.
All in all, we've got 23 riders racing in our jersey this season, and then we've also got Hampus Anderberg, the young Swedish talent, who will ride the season on loan with Azteca - NBCSN.
Leaders
Stage Racers
Fredrik Strand Galta
26 years - 4.100 - 76,92 - 300.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
69
81
73
73
78
79
77
52
63
64
66
70
71
Rasmus Guldhammer
29 years - 4.100 - 78,25 - 400.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
68
81
77
71
74
75
74
69
70
76
71
65
71
Not muched has changed here compared to 2017. Our G's will lead the line in the most difficult stage races and Grand Tours. Last year we made a big mistake in race planning, sending both to the Vuelta, which resulted in Guldhammer being a no-scorer there. We've learnt from that and will mostly split them this season. It's also encouraging to see Galta has worked well this winter and improved his kick on the sharp and steep climbs, and we hope his improved acceleration means it's less of a burden for him.
This season they'll cover all Grand Tours and any stage race and race where mountains dominate. We don't expect any wins, but we hope they'll be up there, fighting for top 10s and similar in most races they participate in.
Puncheurs
Eduard Alexander Beltran
28 years - 4.100 - 78,90 - 320.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
69
79
81
66
73
72
72
59
65
76
78
74
66
Petr Vakoc
26 years - 4.100 - 77,17 - 230.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
71
71
80
69
75
71
67
52
71
74
69
66
69
There's no denying Beltran had an underwhelming 2017 with the team, where he struggled to live up to expectations in the tougher hilly races on the calendar. We're not giving up on the very talented Colombian puncheur, and more motivated than ever, he has improved significantly during the winter, staying at home in Colombia and training in the sun. We're very excited to see how good he will be this season, especially in races that seems tailormade for him, like the PTHC race Pro Hallstatt Classic. For the Ardennes, it's likely he'll struggle this season as well, as compared to other puncheurs he struggles when the route is more like a classic Ardennes route, as he doesn't get to mix his abilities on the mountains and hills there.
We've added depth and strength for the hilly races, bringing in Petr Vakoc as another leader for those races. The young Czech comes from Moser - Sygic, and we're excited to see what he's able to now that he should get to ride his own chances compared to last season, where he was mostly a super domestique for Peter Sagan. Compared to Beltran, he'll do the more flattish hilly races, but also race several days together with Beltran, hopefully making a powerful duo sharing leadership. It's also likely he'll get the chance to shine in a Grand Tour.
Sprinters
Gerald Ciolek
32 years - 4.100 - 78,02 - 240.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
75
62
66
61
73
69
78
60
83
79
69
61
61
Daniel Vesely
26 years - 4.100 - 77,04 - 220.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
73
60
68
57
74
68
76
57
81
80
69
71
57
Sondre Holst Enger
25 years - 4.100 - 76,97 - 250.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
73
62
69
71
71
73
77
58
81
78
62
68
77
This is a department where we without any doubt have made a big upgrade. Ciolek joins from the FA market, and we must admit his rather low wage for such a top class sprinter surprised us, but only in a positive way. We've brought in several riders to form a train for him and support him well, and that's what we'll target during the season, meaning he'll try different races than the ones you expect all sprinters to do. Though, having said that, Tour of Qatar is a must do, which is also the only race he does together with our two other spriners.
Bot Vesely and Holst Enger are sprinters that know to grab the opportunity when it arises, mostly when the absolute world class sprinters are not present. This season will hopefully be a similar story, as we hope they'll grab a win here or there, as we'll be present in with at least one of our three sprinters in any race with a flat stage.
Cobbler
Matteo Trentin
29 years - 4.100 - 78,65 - 450.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
74
59
74
61
76
71
75
81
75
76
67
56
67
Trentin proved last season he's a world class cobbler, being a consistent top 10 or better rider in any classic for the cobblers. We hope he can do the same this season, eventhough his support will be less compared to 2017. He's also our best paid rider, which obviously adds a little bit of pressure, but that's pressure Trentin enjoys, as it also says a lot about his qualities.
Time Trialist
Yoann Paillot
27 years - 4.100 - 76,39 - 160.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
70
70
71
80
75
74
68
56
63
64
69
71
80
We've lacked a time trialist ever since our first season, where Gustav Larsson in his prime gave us some big wins. With Paillot we finally got a time trialist again, and we expect the Frenchman to fight for top 10s in races dominated by one or more time trials.
Domestiques
Stage Racers
Sindre Skjøstad Lunke
25 years - 4.14 - 73,57 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
68
76
71
71
74
73
76
58
60
64
68
69
74
Burr Ho
26 years - 4.100 - 73,36 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
68
73
73
73
68
73
71
61
65
71
69
66
71
Takeaki Amezawa
23 years - 2.00 - 70,70 - 65.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
67
70
70
63
73
75
74
60
68
69
69
68
59
It's an interesting mix of riders we've got ready to serve as domestiques for the mountainous stage racing. Lunke should be a solid rider for the high mountains while still expected to improve. Burr Ho was a late signing, and with his awesome name we expect him to be vital in stage races, especially those also featuring a TTT. Amezawa is a big talent who we expect great things from, but not this season. He'll develop as a climber, and over time, he could feature and do well in mountainous and hilly races.
Puncheurs
Carl Fredrik Hagen
27 years - 4.100 - 74,56 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
68
74
75
65
74
72
71
65
71
72
69
72
64
Souheil Khederi
27 years - 4.100 - 74,12 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
67
74
76
61
68
67
71
59
58
73
69
71
59
With a rather big amount of money spent on our many leaders, we had to look towards the bargain end of the FA market to secure domestiques for Beltran and Vakoc, and we believe we've found them in Hagen and Khederi. Both do well on the hills, but also in the mountains, and that's a key for us this season, as it makes them versatile and well-suited for many races. Admittedly they will race in support the whole season, but who knows, maybe they can try their luck in a breakaway or two.
Sprinters
Tom Scully
28 years - 4.100 - 75,92 - 125.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
74
52
67
63
66
70
78
67
79
80
69
63
77
Janis Dakteris
27 years - 4.100 - 74,76 - 89.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
75
55
64
62
74
70
73
72
77
77
69
61
62
Daniel Oss
31 years - 4.100 - 74,57 - 80.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
78
66
74
67
76
75
73
68
74
74
65
68
71
Adrian Gjølberg
29 years - 4.100 - 71,13 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
76
59
67
64
68
74
64
65
69
74
77
60
64
Trond Hakon Trondsen
24 years - 3.0 - 71,73 - 50.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
71
65
71
64
69
72
73
63
72
72
69
66
65
With Dakteris and Scully we hope to have secured a top quality train for Ciolek. The trio will race mostly together this season, aiming to set up Ciolek for big wins and great placings on flat stages and flat races. They're both solid sprinters on their own, but they know their role in our team this year, and hopefully they'll learn a lot from our experienced German sprinter. In Oss and Gjølberg we've got two strongmen who will do the work early on in flat races, and maybe even contribute towards the end as well if they've got energy left. Our final rider in this departement is Trondsen, who we currently think will develop into a great leadout rider. This year is all about learning for him though, and we think he has got the perfect environnement to do so.
Time Trialist
Andreas Vangstad
26 years - 4.100 - 74,46 - 70.000 €
Fl
Mo
Hi
TT
Sta
Res
Rec
Cob
Sp
Acc
Fig
Do
Prl
74
72
70
77
74
75
74
60
65
68
74
74
76
We're very happy with Vangstad's development, as he has raised his level further, now being a strong time trialist, but also a rider who handles mountains and hills decent. We hope that makes him a great domestique, especially in Grand Tours featuring a team time trial, where we're guaranteed to loose time, but Vangstad has the tools to lead us to a smaller time loss than you might expect before such a stage.
We've got three very experienced and strong riders who will follow Trentin on whatever cobblestone he touches. With Walsleben, Lhotellerie and Lagab we're confident our leader will get sufficient help during the toughest classics, as they've all got the abilities to stay close to Trentin for most of those races. We must admit we also thought of the ToNE team time trial when signing Walsleben and Lagab, as they should be vital for our chances there, a stage we won last season, but where Trentin unfortunately got dropped. Hopefully we can at least avoid the latter this time around.
All in all we're very happy with the team's new look. We don't have an absolute world class leader and worldbeater like Taaramäe, Spilak, Bewley, Boasson Hagen or Bakelants, but we've got depth on all terrains. We know it's very likely that won't lead us to the very top, neither in races or ranking wise, but that was never the goal. With such an approach, we expect to be competitive in any race we do, but never as favourites. Hopefully that will see us race aggressive and show the jersey a lot.
It's very difficult to say what to expect considering the Pro Tour rankings. We hope and feel quite confident we should be a top 10 team, but you never really know, as we felt that last season as well. If everything goes very well, we think we could be a serious challenger for a top 5 as well. Only time will tell!
Edited by ember on 01-08-2018 07:07
I'm counting 9 leaders - that is without a doubt the most I've seen at any team throughout my years in the ManGame
It's tough to predict how you'll do this season. If all your leaders can perform at a reasonable level, the points could quickly add up to a top 5 finish even if you lack a big scorer. Will be very interesting to see how this approach compares to the more tried and tested approach of going with 2-3 big leaders that most people tend to run with.
Beltran also looks great now with his new training, even if he lacks a little in stamina and resistance compared to the best puncheurs.
Really really nice-looking team, go Aker! Cool to see almost-Xero man Lagab and former Xero man Scully in the mix
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
@Sykkel_Freak: I'm excited to see how it works out, that's for sure. I like the approach a lot though, as any win during the season will be a big success, as we won't start a race as favourites, and then the depth should see us stay well clear of any relegation danger as welll.
@roturn: Oops, I was sure I credited you and your team for the layout. Proper journalism right there, not crediting the good guy Should be fixed now! Hopefully Beltran's training makes him a more active rider in PT/PTHC races compared to the 2017 season. If his new stat means he can challenge for top 10s in classics and even more in tough stage races, his scoring will be a lot better than last season.
@Atlantius: I'm pretty sure I'll be happy with Paillot anyway, as only the feeling of being competitive in races dominated by a time trial is unusual after all these seasons without such a feeling Looking forward to see what he can do, especially in "our" home race Tour of Norway, where I'm pretty sure he'll lead the line for us.
@jandal7: Thank you! And sorry again for the Lagab affair I thought for a long time I had to give him up, but then I finally got no on another potential deal, and then it had to be Lagab. Fingers crossed he feels the pressure and does good, especially ToNE should suit him well.
@Heine: The fact that such an approach is quite different to the more classic approach with one big points scorer at a huge wage assisted by two decent leaders, definitely makes it even more interesting, I feel. And I guess we'll see as the season progresses, but I suspect I have to be kind of successful for this to be replicated by others in upcoming seasons. And as it stands now, it doesn't feel like I'm guaranteed any success at all with this approach, but it should be a lot of fun!
@SotD: I think you've had an amazing depth for several seasons, even with Spilak's huge wage included But was it the 2012 season you had Contador, Fothen and Serpa, but also riders like a youngish Steurs, Pozzato, Ulissi and Holloway? Compared to that, I definitely lack a scorer like I assume Contador was, which also makes it difficult to predict how we'll actually do this season, as it's rather all the small points that hopefully add up to a top 10.
No worry! No need to give credit. Was just a fun moment when scrolling down and suddenly thinking, this isn`t my thread.
Beltran surely should score good now. This is some rare combination similar to Trofimov with weaker TT. But in hard stage races, he should surely do well. And 81 might also be enough for classics already. Maybe not consistent but here and there surely.
@roturn: Would be great if he can get lucky in a classic or two as well, but I'm not counting on that, as I fear his flat, stamina and sprint/acc stats will see him suffer in the Ardennes and similar one day-races. Would be great though if he proves me wrong
@Jaktstar22: I definitely hoped to bring in great sprinter this transfer season, with Kristoff coming back being the main priority. When he became too expensive, it was one of Guarnieri, Ciolek and Boeckmans, and I thought there wouldn't be room for much more in the sprinter's department. But Ciolek's low wage gave room for Vesely and some riders to do a train, and hopefully we're allowed to do that. My team hasn't exactly been known for sprint trains, so it will be fun with a change (hopefully)
Agree the odds for Festina not taking the title are low this season, but I struggle to see my team being the one to run away with the main prize, as the lack of a 1500 points +++ scorer will hurt quite a lot when thinking of ranking points. If we can land a safe top 10 with a couple of nice races during the season, I'll be more than happy
@SotD: I think you've had an amazing depth for several seasons, even with Spilak's huge wage included But was it the 2012 season you had Contador, Fothen and Serpa, but also riders like a youngish Steurs, Pozzato, Ulissi and Holloway? Compared to that, I definitely lack a scorer like I assume Contador was, which also makes it difficult to predict how we'll actually do this season, as it's rather all the small points that hopefully add up to a top 10.
In 2011 I had:
- Alberto Contador
- Samuel Sanchez
- Diego Ulissi
- Carlos Castaño
- Mauricio Ardila
- Frederik Nolf
And loaned in:
- Angel Madrazo
- Sam Bewley
Madrazo and Bewley were level 4 unmaxed, but still very strong. I think that is the strongest team, depthwise, I have had, but in 2012 I had the team you are referring to yes
Petr Vakoc | Puncheur | XP: 4.100 | € 230,000 | OVL: 77,15
Tom Scully | Sprinter | XP: 4.100 | € 125,000 | OVL: 75,57
Souheil Khederi | Puncheur | XP: 4.100 | € 50,000 | OVL: 74,11
Azzedine Lagab | Cobbler | XP: 4.100 | € 80,000 | OVL: 74,62
Janis Dakteris | Leadout | XP: 4.100 | € 89,000 | OVL: 74,76
Fredrik Strand Galta 
Rasmus Guldhammer 
Eduard Alexander Beltran 
Gerald Ciolek 
Matteo Trentin 
Yoann Paillot 
Burr Ho 
Takeaki Amezawa 
