Cycling: The team from Belgium, which was on the road this year under the name Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert - Matériaux, is getting a new name. The bad news: It doesn't get much better. Now the team is called Intermarché – Circus – Wanty. In addition, it will be difficult to confirm the performances shown because you lose some important drivers.
Girmay made the breakthrough in 2022
Many pundits, myself included, didn't expect the Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert - Matériaux team to prove themselves at WorldTour level. But the Belgian team taught us better. With a total of 24 victories, 5 of them in the WorldTour, the team had the best season in its history. If you only got 2020 points for the UCI ranking in 3.763, you could already increase to 2021 points in 5.230. The breakthrough came in 2022 with a whopping 10.313 points. played a big part in it Biniam Girmay. The Eritrean man won Gent – Wevelgem and a stage in the Giro d'Italia. This was his breakthrough and at the same time he wrote African cycling history. The South African was also successful Louis Meintjes. Not only did he celebrate a stage win at the Vuelta a Espana, he also finished a strong overall seventh in the Tour de France. However, many other drivers were responsible for the good team result this year. So won Jan Hirt the tour of oman, alexander kristoff the Scheldeprijs and Taco van der Hoorn the Brussels Classic.
Some old hands are leaving the team
It will be difficult for Intermarché - Circus - Wanty to repeat the great year 2022. Even if all remaining drivers confirm their performance, the newcomers should work right away. Because with Domenico Pozzovivo, Alexander Kristoff, Jan Bakelants, and Andrea Pasqualon and Jan Hirt the team loses five experienced professionals who have always been good for top results in the past. In total, no fewer than twelve drivers have left the team. In return, ten new professionals join the team. Every cycling fan should know at least three of them: Rui Costa, Mike Teunissen and Lilian Calmejane. While the former and the latter have their strengths on hilly terrain, Teunissen is particularly strong in the sprint. The other newcomers are mostly young and still unknown in the WorldTour. It is therefore unlikely that Intermarché - Circus - Wanty will repeat the great year 2023 in 2022. However, the company seems to be well positioned for the future.