Cycling: During a meeting of the Professional Cycling Council in Genoa, those present decided on far-reaching and profound reforms within the WorldTour in the coming years. From 2019, the worst WorldTour team and the best ProContinental team will swap places or licenses.
Big Bang in Switzerland – During the PCC on June 21st and 22nd, those present decided sweeping WorldTour reforms in the years to come that could change the face of professional cycling and create a new level of competition among teams. But first things first:
For 2017, the number of WorldTour teams was set at 17. At the moment, the UCI is still granting 18 WorldTour licenses, with the withdrawal of IAM Cycling and Tinkoff at the end of the season, one of the coveted licenses will become free. The German team Bora-Argon18 is the hottest candidate, and there have been numerous rumors about its promotion to the highest racing class for some time.
cycling: Rumor Mill: Peter Sagan on Bora-Argon 18?
Cycling: Every year the marmot says hello. As in every season at this time, the rumor mill is churning. From August 1st, completion of transfers may be reported. Just in time for the Tour de France, there are always numerous rumors. The latest rumor revolves around the world champion and the German team Bora-Argon 18. According to […]
These 17 teams will receive licenses for two years, including for the 2018 season: This is intended to ensure more planning security for the racing teams and improve their negotiating position with the sponsors. These measures were already known in advance and also discussed publicly. Surprisingly, however, further far-reaching reforms have now been announced from 2019 onwards. Until then, the number of WorldTour teams is to be further reduced to 16 and a new ranking list is to be introduced in which the performances of the WorldTour and ProContinental teams are recorded in a comparable manner. However, details are not yet known.
This ranking should then form the basis for a perhaps revolutionary innovation: According to this ranking, the worst WorldTour team should swap places with the best ProContinental racing team. The system is reminiscent of that known from many other sports such as football: Permeability would be created between the top two racing classes and membership is determined by performance. However, so that the WorldTour teams do not suffer from this and do not lose the planning security created by the new reforms, they receive a three-year start guarantee in all WorldTour races with their license - even if they are relegated to the ProContinental class during this period.