We're back at it in 2018! The Kulczyk - DMTEX management felt that though some minds had been changed in Poland regarding the ability of Europeans to work together and accomplish great things (promotion), there were still many sceptics. The 2018 season in the PCT division is an opportunity to combat the scourge of nationalism and xenophobia spreading across Europe.

Particularly with governments across Europe attempting to make deals to keep migrants out and their countries insular, Kulczyk Investments management is more than happy to bankroll a successful cycling team for another year. As the judiciary in Poland continues to be subjected to political attacks, management just hopes that its blatantly political message won't be sidetracked by political or legal attacks on the team.

Before promotion was secured for 2018, DMTEX considered leaving the team, due to lack of French riders. Team manager Janek Wasko will have to balance expectations to introduce further French riders, while also listening to Kulczyk management, which would like to see a Middle Eastern or African rider integrated, to represent the introduction of refugees into European society.

Dates	Race	Category
January
10 Jan	Down Under Classic	HC
28 Jan	Apex Mountain Classic	PTHC
31 Jan	Clasique Pico Basile	C1
February
6 Feb	Omloop Het Nieuwsblad	PTHC
8-14 Feb	Tour de Pologne	HC
10 Feb	Gent Wevelgem	C1
14 Feb	Viana do Castelo	C1
15 Feb	Classique du Grand-Duché	PT WC*
18-23 Feb	Volta a Catalunya	C1
28 Feb	Pro Hallstatt Classic	PTHC
15 Feb	Strada Appia Antica	PT WC*
March
3 Mar	Roma Maxima	C1
7-12 Mar	Vuelta al Pais Vasco	PTHC
10 Mar	Le Samyn	C1
11-16 Mar	Vuelta a Colombia	HC
14-15 Mar	Tour of East Java	C1
28 Mar	E3 Prijs	PTHC
28-31 Mar	Jelajah SKL	C1
31 Mar	GP Herning	HC
April
1 Apr	Paris-Roubaix	PT M*
2-7 Apr	Tour of Vancouver	HC
13-15 Apr	Tour of Ukraine	HC
20-23 Apr	Tour of Cyprus	C1
27 Apr	Sochi Cup	C1
29 Apr	Veenendaal - Veenendaal	HC
29 Apr	Philadelphia Intl Champ	HC
May
1-5 May	Cheshire Cycling Tour	HC
2-7 May	Tour of Romandie	C1
3 May	Fleche Wallone	PT WC*
16 May	Berlin ProRace	HC
27-31 May	Tour of Norway	PTHC
June
3 Jun	Malopolski Wyscig	PTHC
5 Jun	GP Kigali	HC
8 Jun	Riga - Jurmala GP	PTHC
10-14 Jun	Post Danmark Rundt	HC
26 Jun	Ronde van Het Ijsselmeer	C1
30 Jun	Monterrey TTT	C1
July
1-8 Jul	Tour de San Luis	C2
5-6 Jul	Celtic Chrono	C1
20 Jul	Kenya Mountain Classic	HC
26-29 Jul	Tour of Beijing	HC
August
4 Aug	Macskako Kerekparverseny	C1
7 Aug	Clasica San Sebastian	HC
7-13 Aug	Int. Osterreich Rundfahrt	HC
11-21 Aug	Volta a Portugal	PTHC
September
2-22 Sep	Tour of America	C1
4-11 Sep	Balkans International	PTHC
27 Sep	Tour of the Battenkill	PT WC*
29 Sep	Milano-Torino	C1
October
1-9 Oct	Tour du Maroc	PTHC
18 Oct	Japan Cup	HC

*Races in bold are goal races.

Thanks for the well wishes everyone, much appreciated

@LLS - If an 'economic migrant' does make his way into the team, the Europeans could quite rightly say: "They took our jerbs"

@trekbmc - It'll be quite the friendly rivalry going on between you, danny and myself - unluckily for us, you've got the Kwiat beast! We've got some solid lieutenants, you're right; we'll be in the market for leaders this offseason

AbhishekLFC - Looking back at last season's results last night: Vichot is a helluva loss. That being said, he wouldn't have fit into our wage budget in the role he would've played for the new look Kulczyk - DMTEX squad. I guess the same could be said for Kreder? We had him for one great season, so he's gone out on top, and now will get handsomely paid. We're pleased for the man (just wish he wasn't such a greedy twat)

Ripley and jandal7 - Oh it's just roleplaying, I'm a full-on Nazi IRL

The vast majority of Kulczyk's roster that was offered contracts for the 2018 season signed new deals and will remain with the team. Those that will be moving on are as follows: Reto Hollenstein, Vincent Jerôme, Konrad Dabkowski, Piotr Konwa, and Michal Paluta. Kulczyk - DMTEX thanks them for their service and wishes them the best in all their new ventures. Management is especially proud of having helped three Polish riders develop with a year in MGUCI competition, further increasing the talent pool of Poland.

The one rider that did not accept Kulczyk's increased salary offer was Arthur Vichot. Though his last year in the CT division was full of highlights, his lack of consistency, particularly on hilly tours (where he had a habit of crashing) meant that management was more comfortable releasing him when coming into a very competitive PCT puncheur landscape. Still though, we hope he finds another CT team to lead; he was a phenom at £70,000 last season.

Kulczyk - DMTEX management realises that the roster is not fit for purpose in the PCT division quite yet - leaders need to be sourced. Pierre Paolo Penasa is the closest we have to a PCT "leader" but even then, he's certainly not ready to compete with the likes of Pluchkin, Uran, Intxausti or several others. Priority number one is finding leaders.

Yoeri Havik is perhaps in the same boat as Arthur Vichot and 3P - a very solid rider, but perhaps not quite good enough to lead a cobbles or sprint contingent in PCT. He is, however, more than good enough for the CT, and as a super domestique in the PCT. He has been informed that due to budgetary requirements, he'll be on the move this offseason.

Others to be moving on, likely back down to the CT division as leaders/super doms, are Vojtech Hacecky and Jiri Hochmann, though the team will also entertain offers for Mattia Pozzo. Any others will require a substantial bid. As you can see, Janek Wasko, Kulczyk's team manager, has a lot of work to do this offseason.

Warsaw, Poland -- With a crowd gathering outside Kulczyk Investments' Warsaw headquarters, Kulczyk - DMTEX team manager Janek Wasko took the podium.

"This offseason has been one of transition, with some of our most important riders opting to stay with the team as we continue our journey in the PCT division. It's a tremendously exciting time to be involved in the team, and to carry forward the vision of all of those associated with Kulczyk Investments and DMTEX."

"We have an opportunity to show the world what it means to be a tolerant society, working hand in hand with those of all different races, colours and creeds. And with that in mind, I'd like to reveal our jersey for the 2018 PCT season."

"As Kulczyk - DMTEX seeks to set the bar for how the EU works with peoples of all nations, we will be riding in a new jersey this season. Please give it up for our designer, hillis91, who has graciously designed our kit for 2018: 'The Gold Standard'"

The team that will be converging on Zakopane, Poland, at the foot of the Tatra Mountains, in the next week for preseason training is now finalised! For the second straight year, this is the site of Kulczyk - DMTEX's training camp, following the success of its debut season in 2017. There are big hopes for this year, but it seems that with the quality brought in, it may be a season of consolidation. Riding in 'The Gold Standard' jersey, seen above and designed by hillis91, will be the cyclists seen below.

Kulczyk - DMTEX is historically a climbing team, and our most disappointing races have turned out that way due to one man - Rafael 'Puta Madre' Valls. Janek Wasko and the rest of the Kulczyk management said quite literally this offseason, "if you can't beat 'em, buy 'em." We're delighted to have the Spaniard on the roster, leading our charge in the mountains - and especially in the tours, an area where we've been hit-or-miss. We think he'll be well-supported by Kulczyk's leading scorer last season, Penasa, and his compatriot Pozzo, who still has some kick left in his legs.

Further to the Italian stallions, we've brought in our first non-European rider, Metkel Eyob! The Eritrean () hails from the country that produces the most refugees appearing on European shores, by a large margin - partly due to its dictatorship that severely represses free expression and forces mandatory army conscription, and partly due to economic opportunities in Europe. What better way to show the mission of Kulczyk - DMTEX, than to provide a home for a talented rider who can improve a Polish/European roster by adding a new perspective, and new skills? Getting him on a £50,000 wage is a steal, in Kulczyk's view.

Cieslik will serve as a mentor to Piotr Brozyna, who will be a solid tour domestique for years to come. He was one of the top Polish talents available on the free agent market this year, and we're delighted to secure him for many years to come.

After former leader Vichot left in free agency, management made a push to re-acquire him, but he opted for a leading role in the CT division, and we don't blame him.

Instead, we acquired another rider who has had a history of scoring very well at PCT level, Enrico Barbin. We're very pleased to have him, and think his acceleration and sprint abilities after the rolling hills will set him apart, even in a division that has some incredibly talented puncheurs such as Lutsenko, McCarthy and Kwiatkowski. He'll be supported in tours that include a time trial by Jelle Vanendert, who despite his age, still has some fuel left. The same goes for fellow ex-Ferrero rider Pavarin, who can possibly be a bit of a "leadout" for Barbin if necessary.

We're very pleased to have secured Jakub Kaczmarek, who brings a scary combination of hills, time trialling, cobbling and acceleration abilities. He'll be "mentored" by Gradek, who is back for another season, along with fellow youth prospect, and eventual breakaway specialist Paluta.

A budget part of the team, the time trialling contingent is fairly self-explanatory = Mullen plus a couple of old farts. Barth and Goddaert are useful on minimum wage, and Barth in particular can be useful as a leadout. Of note, Polychronis Tzortzakis has time trialling abilities for the increasing number of TTTs across the division, bringing dual capacity at minimum wage.

Kulczyk's new focus area, we've chucked a lot of money at the pavé squad. Initial plans to secure Florian Senechal were thwarted by Team Tinkoff, but we hold no resentment - goddammit Oleg .

Instead, we'll further replicate our ex-Strava contingent with Jérôme Baugnies, who should be far and away the best cobbler in the division in another era - however, he'll now be joined by Zepuntke, Vanspeybrouck and Blythe. He'll still stand out on the hillier cobbles, where he is joined by Langeveld, secured at a premium at a £100,000 wage. Further, Fouquet provides additional support, and may even show the aggression to get himself into breakaways here or there. We're pleased with how this part of the squad has turned out, despite the lack of the number 1 targeted Frenchman.

Three words were the name of the game for this part of the squad, budget, budget, budget. When we saw Degenkolb, Mohs, Lo Cicero and others staying in the PCT, we decided it would be best to focus elsewhere.

However, we did manage to secure a clear leader in Lavoine, historically a decent scorer, though he has endured a difficult time recently in Fablok colours. He will stay on a Polish roster and will bring his silly combination of insane downhill skills along with very little stamina to Kulczyk - DMTEX this season. He will be led out by Bennett, Tzortzakis and Laton, who continues his development this year. Overall, not too shabby.

Will Kulczyk - DMTEX hit its rumoured Top 10 goal (to be confirmed at a later date)? Possibly, though rather unlikely due to the strength of the division.

Does management believe it has enough to stay up in the PCT division? Yes.

Sponsors, DMTEX, are also believed to be livid at the lack of French riders brought in, and discussions are rumoured to be ongoing to transition sponsorship rights to Alitalia next season, with an Italian focused roster clearly the outcome of this year's offseason.

In setting the team out for long-term success, Kulczyk - DMTEX management has built a roster with a mix of established scorers, veteran mentors, and young Polish riders who have the ability to turn into useful members of the team. Overall, we'd rate the offseason as a 6.5 out of 10 - but there is plenty of work to be done this offseason on the training front and in future years to build a sustainable PCT, and hopefully PT, team.