The dwindling options available to Mark Cavendish and co. for 2023
The wreckage of B&B Hotels-KTM has plunged 20 contracted riders into ice-cold water, along with the many incoming transfers expected to ride with the rebooted ‘Men in Glaz’ in 2023.
With just three weeks to go before the new year, dozens of people, riders and staff included, are left floundering, racing to find a lifeboat, but there are not enough and they’re all too small. This leaves some swimming to shore (retirement) while others are seeking out any possible floating vessel they can grab hold of… Ok, maybe it’s time to retire this clumsy analogy.
Among those treading water is Mark Cavendish, around whom Jérôme Pineau’s ambitious new project was due to be built. The British national champion and 34-time Tour de France stage winner would seem a pretty safe bet as far as new contracts are concerned, but up to now, all we’ve had are rumours. All the while, his fellows are slowly but surely being picked out of the cold, which also means teams are completing their rosters – the lifeboats are filling up.
So what are the options? It is a disastrous time of year to be searching for a new team, obviously, but there are still a number of squads yet to meet the UCI’s 30-rider maximum. Although the number is shrinking fast.
Here’s what we know (at time of writing), the numbers, the rumours, the closed doors…
Arkéa Samsic – 29 confirmed
The French team, which is stepping up to WorldTour next year, was seen as a reasonable option for Cavendish, not least because until this week, they’ve had multiple (that is, two) open spots, which would mean the sprinter could take a colleague, namely Max Richeze who was expected to be the Manxman’s lead-out lieutenant.
However, Arkéa Samsic is now down to just one spot after the announcement that Andrii Ponomar will be their 29th rider. It’s fantastic news for the young Ukrainian who upgrades to WorldTour after two years with Drone Hopper-Androni Giocattoli. So maybe not an option for a big-budget sprinter, but a decent proposition for one of the floundering Frenchmen?
AG2R-Citroën and Groupama-FDJ – 28 apiece
Staying in France, both incumbent French WorldTeams have space on the bus (sorry, lifeboat), and while neither seems a likely option for Cavendish, there’s hope for a small handful of contracted B&B riders, or the likes of Nick Schultz and Cees Bol whose talents are burgeoning but who have smaller price tags than the ‘Manx Missile’.
Ineos Grenadiers – 28
Onto the more likely, or at least more hopeful options. The closest thing to his home team, Ineos Grenadiers is a seemingly obvious destination for Cav. And if the team’s British registration isn’t enough, their *ahem* Sky-high budget is a convincing argument for ‘the most successful sprinter of all time’. And it looks like they have two spots still open, so there’s space for a loyal lead-out rider too.
As we’ve argued before, Ineos could do with someone like Cav to divert the attention away from their lack of a convincing GC contender for the first time in years. No disrespect meant to Egan Bernal, but the lad’s still on the road to complete comeback, so if he’s at the start line in July, the 2019 Tour winner would surely benefit from a shared focus.
What’s more, a rider of the calibre and experience of Mr Cavendish would be a fine mentor for the remarkably young team that Dave Brailsford and Rod Ellingworth have put together.
Intermarché-Circus-Wanty – 28
This is an interesting one. The Belgian squad is relatively new to the WorldTour but they’ve thrived, especially in this past season. With Gent-Wevelgem and Giro stage winner Biniam Girmay and promising fast man Gerben Thijssen already onboard, it seems less than likely that they’d let another sprinter into the fold. However, with their Classics pedigree still very much intact, there is hope here for everyone else in the shop window. Including, perhaps, Nairo Quintana who may work reasonably well in tandem with GC rider-turned-stage hunter Louis Meintjes.
It’s worth noting though, that the team’s resurgent Italian climber Domenico Pozzovivo is yet to confirm his plans for 2023, so there may be one less spot pretty soon. Somewhere at least.
Bahrain Victorious – 28
One of the bigger budget teams on this list, Bahrain Victorious still has some room, and though this is probably not an option for Cav given his unhappy history, this is a very real – and rather amusing – possibility for Quintana. The Colombian has indicated that a contract is already sorted for next year, also stating that it jolly well will be WorldTour-level. The elephant in the room is the presence of Quintana’s old Movistar teammate Mikel Landa who has already listed the Tour de France as his main target for next season. You don’t need me to explain the history there…right?
Lotto-Dstny – 26
Let’s face it, the chances of Cavendish joining the stable already occupied by not just Caleb Ewan but Arnaud De Lie too is incredibly unlikely. But the team we’ve known as Lotto Soudal for nine years is still a way off the UCI’s maximum team size as it prepares for a drop to ProTeam status. If not Cav, then perhaps Nick Schultz? Cees Bol? Pierre Rolland? Or an Alan Boileau to join the outfit’s growing young climbing group?
TotalEnergies – beaucoup de space
Another ProTeam with a fair bit of real estate is the French Team TotalEnergies, which is now looking among the more likely options for a sprinter headed for a Tour de France record… Granted, this option requires us/the team management to put aside the potential for intramural head-butting between the two huge characters of Sagan and Cavendish, but which of these two is more likely to deliver? I might be biased, but I favour the Manxman.
If the internet is to be believed, TotalEnergies have only filed 25 signed contracts for 2023, so there’s all sorts of room. Pierre Rolland has already been linked to a possible transfer back home – the two-time stage winner is still synonymous with the green of Europcar, so an end-of-career season of freelancing in the mountains would be just perfect, that’s if he doesn’t opt for a quiet “career change” instead.
Euskaltel-Euskadi – closed, but…
Now bear with me, for a moment. Yes, the orange-liveried Euskaltel-Euskadi might have confirmed their 20-rider squad for 2023, but the team has recently emerged as a possibility for one Mark Cavendish, with the Basque team hoping for an (admittedly unlikely) invite to the Tour de France, which next year starts in the Basque Country. Cav’s signing would seriously bolster their ambitions, however, this is a scenario that is only possible if the 37-year-old can attract outside sponsorship to pay his presumably impossible salary.
Room for a small one?
There is still room at the inn at some of the most successful teams on the WorldTour, but I can’t see any of them picking up a really big name; they’re already saturated. There are only so many egos and race programmes that one team can juggle.
Jumbo-Visma has more leaders than support riders at this point, so don’t expect a ‘name’ to land there. The same can be said for Tadej Pogačar’s UAE Team Emirates and Soudal-QuickStep, home of world champion, former world champion and top-shelf sprinter Fabio Jakobsen among many many others.
Trek-Segafredo reportedly has space going too, but if they’re to stay within the rules – and if I’ve got my facts right – the US-registered team can only sign a rookie or second-year pro; the UCI’s rules stipulate that for a team to put forward the maximum 30-rider roster, at least two must be neo pro, i.e. in the first two years of a pro career. As it stands, only Thibau Nys fits this mould, unless Mathias Vacek’s curtailed second season with ProTeam Gazprom-Rusvelo helps matters in any way, and that his trainee status at Trek-Segafredo in the latter half of this season doesn’t become a shot in the foot…
Israel-Premier Tech – 28, but doors closed?
This is where many of us thought Cav might find a home, an arrangement that would all but guarantee an invite to the Tour de France. As far as the UCI is concerned, Israel-Premier Tech still has space but the soon-to-be ProTeam has announced the completion of their roster with the signing of Stephen Williams, who was due to ride for the ‘Men in Glaz’ next year, and Reto Hollenstein’s extension.
“Stevie Williams was already a rider on our radar earlier this year so when he became available, we didn’t hesitate to bring Stevie to IPT to complete the 2023 roster,” said general manager Kjell Carlström in the team announcement. “We were glad to welcome Stevie to the final days of our team camp this week before he hits the ground running in 2023.”
It wouldn’t be the first time a team has backtracked on a public statement, but for now, this looks less likely than once thought. It would be nice if they could at least offer a life vest to one or two of the smaller-named riders…
Last-chance options
Staying with the ProTeam candidates, there are a large number of squads that are way off the maximum rider limit. How well does Cav know Contador, boss of Eolo-Kometa? Does Uno-X have room for two superstars with Alexander Kristoff already on his way? We know Cav has an existing relationship with Doug Ryder, maybe he could add to his Tour tally with, erm, brand-new squad Q36.5??
Let’s be honest, this list of second-tier teams looks more open to interest from everyone else connected with Pineau’s (overly) ambitious 2023 project. There are a lot of them.
Rosters complete
Bora-Hansgrohe is the latest to fill up their squad for the 2023 season after adding B&B Hotels rider Victor Koretzky to their lineup. The German outfit joins Astana-Qazaqstan, Cofidis, EF Education-EasyPost, Movistar, BikeExchange-Jayco, DSM and Alpecin-Deceuninck, which rescued Ramon Sinkeldam from the B&B wreckage last week.
Check back here for updates…
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