There are growing concerns about the future of the B&B Hotels team and with it Mark Cavendish’s expected move to the French ProTeam team for 2023.
Team manager Jérôme Pineau had been due to reveal the 2023 roster for the men’s and women’s teams, together with new title sponsors on Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s Tour de France route presentation in Paris. However the team suddenly cancelled the event on Tuesday evening, stating in a social media post the decision was made “due to the absence of some of the main stakeholders in the 2023 team’s project”.
Now French newspaper L’Équipe (opens in new tab) has revealed further details on the team’s possible future and their struggles to secure a title sponsor to cover the cost of a major increase in the team’s budget.
Last week the team was not included in the UCI announcement of the applicants for 2023 WorldTeam and ProTeam licences. B&B Hotels still has time to complete its registration but faces fines for every delay and further scrutiny from the UCI accountants.
One rider agent described the concerns about the future of the B&B Hotels team as “very worrying.”
The team claimed that the delay in registration was due “the change in legal structure inherent in the evolution of the team for the years to come.”
In August Pineau said the chances of signing Cavendish for 2023 were “50-50” but seemed confident of building his team around the Manxman as he targeted the record number of stage wins at the Tour de France.
Cavendish has still to confirm his team for 2023 but has been widely linked to B&B Hotels. A number of other riders are set to join the team including Cees Bol, Nick Schultz, Ramon Sinkeldam and veteran leadout man Maximiliano Richeze. Pierre Rolland, Luca Mozzato, Julien Morice, Thibault Ferasse, Cyril Lemoine, Maxime Chevalier and Cyril Gauthier have all extended their contracts with the team according to L’Équipe.
Pineau spoke with enthusiasm about his plans for 2023 during the Tour de France but has since kept a low profile, as he worked to build the team. October 15 was a key deadline for team registration with the UCI, with riders free to terminate any contracts if a team fails to supply vital information and a bank guarantee by then.
That means that Cavendish and the other riders could join a different team for 2023. The clock is ticking and Pineau faces a race against time to secure the future of his team for 2023.
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