2024 Season Review | Groupama - FDJ: Strong first year without Thibaut Pinot, but losing Lenny Martinez could cause problems in 2025

Over the past few weeks, we have started to review each World Tour team’s 2024 season. Today, the team we’re looking at is Marc Madiot’s Groupama – FDJ. Year one without Thibaut Pinot complete for Groupama – FDJ, and the French side managed to have a fairly acceptable season.

The team seems to constantly be under pressure to produce the next great French talent, as the country waits desperately for a new grand tour contender. They coped well enough without Pinot this year, but, as one of the oldest and most established squads in the peloton, the pressure will be on team boss Marc Madiot to start winning more races and fast.

The team picked up a solid 15 victories throughout the year, and riders like Stefan Küng and David Gaudu finished the season very strongly. With 12,357 points, the team managed to finish the season ranked 10th in the UCI rankings, but this was down from seventh at the end of 2023.

Let’s take a look at how the French outfit performed throughout the year, how they recovered from losing their long-standing leader, and whether they can still be called the number one French team in the peloton.

The team started off the season strong as Laurence Pithie won the Cadel Evans Road Race back in January. The young New Zealander, aged just 21, showcased his incredible potential by taking victory in one of the first big races of the year. The sprint into Geelong was challenging, with Pithie edging out some tough competition to claim the win. This was actually the team’s best result of the year points-wise, as he picked up a whopping 225 points for the team.

Pithie continued his strong form on to the European cobbled classics. With Pithie and Stefan Küng, Marc Madiot has a pretty strong duo of riders for the cobbled races going forward, and they picked up some good results in the one-day races this year. Pithie finished in the top 10 at Paris-Roubaix, and Küng was very strong in reaching the podium at Dwars Door Vlaanderen. In a race marred by Wout van Aert’s nasty crash, Küng stayed on his bike and picked up 110 points for the team. Küng was also fifth at Paris-Roubaix, where Mathieu van der Poel decimated the field, but the Swiss rider had a very strong race to pick up a haul of 100 points for the team.

French cycling’s next great hope, Lenny Martinez, had a very strong year, as the 21-year-old won five races in the early stages of the season, including the Classic Var and the Tour du Doubs. Martinez’s transfer to Bahrain Victorious next year will be giving Marc Madiot a headache, but we’ll get to that shortly.

Groupama – FDJ’s grand tour season was not really anything to write home about. The team will be very disappointed to have not picked up a single stage win in the grand tours, and this is definitely an area they will need to address going forward.

Groupama-FDJ has a strong recent history in grand tours, largely thanks to Thibaut Pinot. The French rider’s fighting spirit and emotion resonated with fans around the world, especially in his home country. Pinot’s best moments included his victories on the queen stages of the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia, and he gave the team a consistent threat during grand tours. Notably, Pinot’s triumph on the Col du Tourmalet in 2019 during the Tour de France is one of the best moments a French rider has produced at the Tour recently. Without Pinot, the team lacked a climber who could ignite excitement and hope for grand tour stage wins or even podium finishes.

Grand tours are immensely significant to teams like Groupama-FDJ not just for prestige but for sponsorship visibility and team morale. Winning or even performing well at these events boosts the team’s profile and can secure vital sponsorships. For Groupama-FDJ, success in the Tour de France especially is crucial. Pinot’s departure has left a gap not just in results but in the identity of the team’s grand tour aspirations.

Whilst the team’s performance in the GC at the Giro d’Italia and the Tour de France wasn’t exactly impressive, they came alive at the Vuelta a España at the end of the summer. David Gaudu, in particular, rediscovered his form during the Spanish grand tour. This year, the 28-year-old had struggled at the Tour de France, finishing just 65th in GC. But Gaudu bounced back at the Vuelta a España, where he finished 6th in the GC, which was the team’s best performance in a grand tour since he came 4th at the Tour de France in 2022.

Speaking to Cyclism’Actu, Gaudu said, "I had 87 days of racing, which is my biggest season. There were so many ups and downs, even just at the start of the season. I was still able to raise my arms, but then the Dauphiné-Tour de France sequence, with the COVID before the Tour, it was extremely complicated. From the end of the Tour I had the knife between my teeth,” he reflected.

"The team needs me 100%. I've been through a lot of difficult things. It's part of a career unfortunately, you have to go through it.” The Frenchman seems positive about his strong finish to 2024 and had some fighting words ahead of next season, “I'm happy in my life, I'm happy to take my bike, to go riding and to hurt myself. See you in 2025.”

The off-season has brought significant changes to Groupama-FDJ’s lineup, both positive and challenging. The departure of Lenny Martinez to Bahrain Victorious is perhaps the most impactful, as the 21-year-old climber was seen as a central figure for the future of French cycling. Martinez has openly expressed his desire to win the Tour de France, and his exit will undoubtedly be a big loss for Marc Madiot’s squad. His five victories this season showcased his potential as a leader, and losing him will leave a noticeable void in the team’s strategy going forward.

On the positive side, Groupama-FDJ secured the services of Rémi Cavagna from Movistar after what he described as a “disastrous year.” Known for his time-trial prowess and aggressive breakaway attempts, Cavagna could add a much-needed spark to the team’s race tactics. Guillaume Martin’s move from Cofidis is another strategic addition aimed at bolstering the team’s climbing department, while Johan Jacobs’ arrival will strengthen their roster for the classics.

The team also faces the challenge of having lost other young riders like Laurence Pithie, who has moved to Red Bull Bora-Hansgrohe. Groupama-FDJ has traditionally thrived by nurturing young talent and integrating them into their system, but with multiple key departures, they may need to think outside the box to get back to their best. The combination of incoming experience and outgoing youth will be a true test of Marc Madiot’s ability to adapt and re-strategize to keep Groupama-FDJ among the top ranks.

Overall, the team dealt with losing Pinot pretty well. They got some solid results in the early part of the season, and Gaudu’s GC performance at the Vuelta was a reminder of what he is capable of.

Unfortunately, the lack of a grand tour stage win means they have to be marked down. And Marc Madiot has certainly got his hands full going forwards, given he’s losing some of his bright young talents to rival teams. So, there were certainly positives for the French team in 2024, but perhaps they could face more challenges come 2025.