2011/12 Cycling Transfer Thread

[monty1104]

That explains alot.

 

[Sasquatch]

Tony Martin has signed to Quick-Step.

He rejected offers from Leopard, SaxoBank, Astana, RadioShack and Skil-Shimano.

Peter Velits & Tony Martin are good signs for Quick-Step. They are really upping their game.

With Quick-Step merging with Lotto, suddenly Van Den Broeck has a nice team around him consisting of Martin, Velits, Vanendert, De Weert etc.

 

[Hornberger]

With Quick-Step merging with Lotto, suddenly Van Den Broeck has a nice team around him consisting of Martin, Velits, Vanendert, De Weert etc.

Quickstep and Omega Pharma Lotto are not merging
The current Omega Pharma Lotto riders will be riding with Lotto Ridley.
The current Quickstep riders will be riding with Omega Pharma - Quickstep

 

[monty1104]

Gilbert signs with BMC. I'd be spewing if I was Thor! http://www.bmc-racing.com/us-en/team/news/team/bmc-racing-team-signs-philippe-gilbert.html

 

[Cruiser23]

BMC wins all the classics next season...

 

[Wahooti Fandango]

BMC assembling a super team.

 

[Flawed Genius]

Read about the Gilbert signing in the Age not long ago and immediately assumed that Evans has sprouted a twelve inch boner.

The makings of a champion team being assembled.

 

[monty1104]

Still a bit worried about BMC TBH. Seems like a team of champions more than a champion team.

Evans proved he was good enough to win Le Tour, but his team was nowhere near the best team. Would love to see them sign an absolute gun climbing domestique, someone that can do what Pierre Rolland or Sylvester Szmyd did for their leaders.

 

[bing181]

Still a bit worried about BMC TBH. Seems like a team of champions more than a champion team.

Evans proved he was good enough to win Le Tour, but his team was nowhere near the best team. Would love to see them sign an absolute gun climbing domestique, someone that can do what Pierre Rolland or Sylvester Szmyd did for their leaders.

BMC did rather well in the team TT, it's obviously not all smoke and mirrors. You get the feeling that Hincapie and Burghardt are a couple of bruisers, but sure, a couple of mountain specialists wouldn't go astray.

As for the Thor/Gilbert/Cadel equation, I suspect it will work itself out. In particular, Thor and Gilbert are very different riders, and apart from the tour, would have a different program.

 

[monty1104]

Thor and Gilbert are both spring classics riders. Thor left Garmin because he was not given license to try and win Paris-Roubaix (although i believe it was the right call, given his team mate won).

Between the two of them, they could sweep the classics. But whether they will agree to split the races between them is yet to be seen.

 

[Buzzasto DaSilva]

Still a bit worried about BMC TBH. Seems like a team of champions more than a champion team.

Evans proved he was good enough to win Le Tour, but his team was nowhere near the best team. Would love to see them sign an absolute gun climbing domestique, someone that can do what Pierre Rolland or Sylvester Szmyd did for their leaders.

Yaroslav Popovych? Oh wait...

 

[monty1104]

Yaroslav Popovych? Oh wait...

yes, this is very true

 

[Wahooti Fandango]

Haha, awesome call in regards to Popvych. Evans has never had a climbing domestique that has actually done much. Horner was probably the best.

 

[Sasquatch]

Leipheimer and Martin are off to Quick-Step.

Velits/Leipheimer/Martin/De Weert/Seeldraeyers/Chavanel/Pineau/De Maar/Engels

That's an alright team.

 

[Sasquatch]

RadioShack and Leopard-Trek may merge. That's the rumour going around.

It makes sense. RadioShack is nothing without Armstrong. They will die eventually so they may as well merge.

 

[monty1104]

Only 13 riders signed for next year. Think its safe to say they will become "defunctshak"

 

[Bond.ShaneBond]

Good stuff. Hopefully Bruyneel is put out to pasture as well.

 

[monty1104]

BMC have signed Van Garderen and Marco Pinotti. McEwen signed for GreenEdge.

 

[Freakie]

Lots of talk Goss has signed with GreenEdge...

 

[Sasquatch]

My credible sources say he signed 3-4 weeks ago as well as Leigh Howard. They just couldn't announce it until September.

Plus his name was on the leaked list of 25 riders that came out prior to that.

 

[monty1104]

Michael Albasini - "Every rider from HTC already has a contract for next year".

 

[Sasquatch]

Michael Albasini - "Every rider from HTC already has a contract for next year".

Yeah

Albasini is off to GreenEdge with Goss and Howard.

BMC plucked up Van Garderen and Pinotti

Quick-Step plucked the Velits brothers and Martin

Sky plucked Eisel, Cavendish, Sivtsov and a few others.

Rabobank plucked Renshaw

Garmin plucked Rasmussen

 

[monty1104]

Porte off to Team Sky.

 

[Hellgood]

Porte off to Team Sky.

Is that a smart move? It will be hard enough for them to fit Cavendish and Wiggins in their squads for Grand Tours, is Porte just happy doing his stint as a super-domestique, I would have thought he would want to be the main GC man somewhere?

 

[Bond.ShaneBond]

Good stuff. Hopefully Bruyneel is put out to pasture as well.

Yuck, he will be running the show. Schleck's likability takes yet another dive.