Cycling transfers: Fabio Aru has made his decision. The Italian will start for the Qhubeka – Assos team next season and act as captain there.
Fabio Aru wants to attack again
At the age of 23, Fabio Aru achieved a sensational 2014rd place overall at the 3 Giro d'Italia. The Italian cycling fans were thrilled. They finally have a young top class driver again. He confirmed his talent with 5th place at the Vuelta a Espana in the same year. In 2015 things went even better for him. Second place at the Giro was followed by overall victory at the Vuelta. But after that it went downhill. He transferred from Astana to Team UAE. After three very weak years, the Italian was looking for a change of scenery again. In 2 he will be pedaling for Qhubeka – Assos, formerly NTT. It will be a fresh start for him and the team. At the age of 2021 it is certainly not too late – and Fabio Aru has plenty of talent.
Fabio Aru:
“At this point in my career, Team Qhubeka – Assos is the perfect place for me. And I am very grateful for this opportunity. I know I'm capable of similar success again."
Ineos extends contracts
The British team Ineos is also strengthening. After an unusual but not disappointing 2020, the course continues to be set for success. With Chris Froome leaving the team, four extremely strong climbers join the team in Richie Porte, Adam Yates, Daniel Martinez and Laurens De Plus. We should also not underestimate the huge talent Thomas Pidcock. Michal Kwiatkowski extended his contract by three years today. There are also unconfirmed rumors about a new three-year contract for Giro winner Tao Geoghegan Hart and time trial world champion Filippo Ganna. The Ineos team will definitely not be weaker after this transfer winter. The duel against the Dutch team Jumbo - Visma should go into the next round in 2021.
AG2R – Citroën
Additions: Greg van Avermaet (CCC), Bob Jungels (Deceuninck - Quick-Step), Lilian Calmejane (Total Direct Energie), Michael Schär (CCC), Marc Sarreau (Groupama - FDJ), Damien Touze (Cofidis), Gijs van Hoecke (CCC ), Ben O'Connor (NTT), Stan Dewulf (Lotto – Soudal), Anthony Jullien (AG2R La Mondiale), Nicolas Prodhomme (Cofidis)
Departures: Romain Bardet (Sunweb), Alexis Vuillermoz (Total Direct Energie), Alexandre Geniez (Total Direct Energie), Pierre Latour (Total Direct Energie), Silvan Dillier (Alpecin – Fenix), Quentin Jauregui (B&B Hotels – Vital Concept), Harry Tanfield (Ribble Weldtite), Axel Domont (Retired), Clement Chevrier (Retired), Stijn Vandenbergh (Retired)
Astana-Premier Tech
Additions: Yevgeniy Fedorov (Vino - Astana Motors), Gleb Brussenskiy (Vino - Astana Motors), Matteo Sobrero (NTT), Javier Romo (?), Ben Perry (Israel Cycling Academy), Andrea Piccolo (Colpack - Ballan), Stefan de Bod ( NTT), Samuele Battistella (NTT)
Departures: Miguel Angel Lopez (Movistar), Daniil Fominykh (Retired), Zhandos Bizhigitov (Retired)
Bahrain-McLaren
Additions: Jack Haig (Mitchelton-Scott)
Departures: Enrico Battaglin (Bardiani – CSF – Faizanè), Ivan Garcia Cortina (Movistar)
Bora-hansgrohe
Additions: Wilco Kelderman (Sunweb), Nils Politt (Israel Start-Up Nation), Frederik Wandahl (ColoQuick), Jordi Meeus (SEG), Giovanni Aleotti (Friuli ASD), Matthew Walls (?), Ben Zwiehoff (?)
Departures: Rafal Majka (UAE), Jempy Drucker (Cofidis), Gregor Mühlberger (Movistar), Oscar Gatto (end of career)
Circus—Wanty Gobert
Additions: Rein Taaramäe (Total Direct Energie), Baptiste Planckaert (Bingoal – Wallonie Bruxelles), Louis Meintjes (NTT), Jan Hirt (CCC), Lorenzo Rota (Vini Zabù – KTM), Jonas Koch (CCC), Georg Zimmermann (CCC)
Departures: Timothy Dupont (Bingoal – Wallonie Bruxelles), Xandro Meurisse (Alpecin – Fenix), Yoann Offredo (end of career), Fabien Doubey (Total Direct Energie)
Cofidis
Additions: Jempy Drucker (Bora - hansgrohe), Simon Geschke (CCC), Jelle Wallays (Lotto - Soudal), Ruben Fernandez (Euskaltel - Euskadi), Tom Bohli (UAE), Szymon Sajnok (CCC), Remy Rochas (Nippo Delko One Provence) , Andre Carvalho (Hagen Berman Axeon), Thomas Champion (?)
Departures: Cyril Lemoine (B&B Hotels - Vital Concept), Luis Angel Mate (Euskaltel - Euskadi), Damien Touze (AG2R - Citroën), Dimitri Claeys (Qhubeka - Assos), Marco Mathis (?)
Deceuninck—Quick Step
Additions: Josef Cerny (CCC)
Departures: Bob Jungels (AG2R – Citroën)
EF
Additions: Michael Valgren (NTT), Hideto Nakane (Nippo Delko One Provence), Will Barta (CCC), Daniel Arroyave (?)
Departures: Sep Vanmarcke (Israel Start-Up Nation), Tanel Kangert (Mitchelton - Scott), Michael Woods (Israel Start-Up Nation), Daniel Martinez (Ineos), Kristoffer Halvorsen (Uno-X), Luis Villalobos (?), Simon Clarke (Qhubeka - Assos), Sean Bennett (Qhubeka - Assos)
Groupama - FDJ
Additions: Attila Valter (CCC), Matteo Badilatti (Israel Start-Up Nation), Clement Davy (Equipe continentale Groupama – FDJ), Lars van den Berg (Equipe continentale Groupama – FDJ)
Departures: Marc Sarreau (AG2R - Citroën), Kilian Frankiny (Qhubeka - Assos), Leo Vincent (?)
Israel Start Up Nation
Additions: Chris Froome (Ineos), Sep Vanmarcke (EF), Daryl Impey (Mitchelton - Scott), Michael Woods (EF), Alessandro De Marchi (CCC), Patrick Bevin (CCC), Carl Fredrik Hagen (Lotto - Soudal), Sebastian Berwick (St George), Taj Jones (Israel Cycling Academy)
Departures: Nils Politt (Bora – hansgrohe), Matteo Badilatti (Groupama – FDJ), Rory Sutherland (end of career), Travis McCabe (end of career)
Lotto – Soudal
Additions: Andreas Kron (Riwal Securitas), Xandres Vervloesem (Lotto - Soudal U23), Kamil Malecki (CCC), Sebastien Grignard (Lotto - Soudal U23), Harry Sweeny (Lotto - Soudal U23), Maxim van Gils (Lotto - Soudal U23), Viktor Verschaeve (Lotto - Soudal U23), Sylvain Moniquet (Equipe continentale Groupama - FDJ), Filippo Conca (Biesse Aredi)
Departures: Nikolas Maes (end of career), Jelle Wallays (Cofidis), Adam Hansen (end of career), Carl Fredrik Hagen (Israel Start-Up Nation), Stan Dewulf (AG2R Citroën), Remy Mertz (Bingoal – Wallonie Bruxelles)
Mitchelton-Scott
Additions: Michael Matthews (Sunweb), Tanel Kangert (EF), Amund Grondahl Jansen (Jumbo – Visma), Kevin Colleoni (Biesse Aredi)
Departures: Michael Albasini (Retired), Adam Yates (Ineos), Daryl Impey (Israel Start-Up Nation), Jack Haig (Bahrain - McLaren), Edoardo Affini (Jumbo - Visma)
Movistar
Additions: Gregor Mühlberger (Bora - hansgrohe), Ivan Garcia Cortina (Bahrain - McLaren), Gonzalo Serrano (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA), Abner Gonzalez (?), Miguel Angel Lopez (Astana)
Departures: Jürgen Roelandts (end of career), Carlos Betancur (?), Eduardo Sepulveda (Androni Giocattoli – Sidermec), Eduard Prades (Delko One Provence)
Ineos
Additions: Richie Porte (Trek - Segafredo), Adam Yates (Mitchelton - Scott), Daniel Martinez (EF), Laurens De Plus (Jumbo - Visma), Thomas Pidcock (?)
Departures: Chris Froome (Israel Start-Up Nation), Vasil Kiryienka (Retired), Ian Stannard (Retired), Chris Lawless (Total Direct Energie)
Jumbo–Visma
Additions: Sam Oomen (Sunweb), Nathan van Hooydonck (CCC), Edoardo Affini (Mitchelton - Scott), Olav Kooij (Jumbi - Visma Development Team), David Dekker (SEG), Gijs Leemreize (Jumbo - Visma Development Team)
Departures: Tom Leezer (End of Career), Amund Grondahl Jansen (Mitchelton – Scott), Laurens De Plus (Ineos), Taco van der Hoorn (Beat)
Qhubeka-Assos
Additions: Simon Clarke (EF), Kilian Frankiny (Groupama - FDJ), Dimitri Claeys (Cofidis), Łukasz Wiśniowski (CCC), Karel Vacek (Colpack - Ballan), Emil Vinjebo (Riwal Securitas), Harry Tanfield (AG2R La Mondiale), Sean Bennett (EF), Connor Brown (NTT), Fabio Aru (UAE)
Departures: Edvald Boasson Hagen (Total Direct Energie), Roman Kreuziger (Gazprom - RusVelo), Michael Valgren (EF), Louis Meintjes (Circus - Wanty Gobert), Ryan Gibbons (UAE), Ben King (Rally), Ben O'Connor (AG2R – Citroën), Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier (Trek – Segafredo), Rasmus Tiller (Uno-X), Matteo Sobrero (Astana), Stefan de Bod (Astana), Samuele Battistella (Astana), Enrico Gasparotto (end of career), Michael Carbel (NTT)
Sunweb
Additions: Romain Bardet (AG2R), Marco Brenner (?), Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X), Niklas Märkl (Sunweb Development Team), Romain Combaud (Nippo Delko One Provence), Kevin Vermaerke (Hagen Berman Axeon)
Departures: Michael Matthews (Mitchelton - Scott), Wilco Kelderman (Bora - hansgrohe), Sam Oomen (Jumbo - Visma)
Trek-Segafredo
Additions: Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier (NTT), Antonio Tiberi (Colpack Ballan), Mattias Skjelmose Jensen (Leopard), Jakob Egholm (Hagen Berman Axeon)
Departures: Richie Porte (Ineos), Pieter Weening (end of career)
UAE Team Emirates
Additions: Rafal Majka (Bora – hansgrohe), Matteo Trentin (CCC), Ryan Gibbons (NTT), Juan Ayuso (Colpack Ballan)
Departures: Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin - Fenix), Tom Bohli (Cofidis), Edward Ravasi (Eolo - Kometa), Fabio Aru (Qhubeka - Assos)