"Contradictory to what cycling is all about" - Stan Dewulf and Oliver Naesen critical of UCI Points system as AG2R flirt with relegation from World Tour

With new sponsors and a new team, Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team have big plans for the future. At the conclusion of the 2023 season however, the team are flirting with World Tour relegation.

"Last year the points were a bit lacking. Every week we were told that things had to be improved and that the points are of vital importance," says Oliver Naesen in conversation with Sporza. "The team is therefore very busy with those points."

Naesen's teammate, Stan Dewulf though has a rather more critical outlook on the situation. "It is also important for the sponsors that we gain points, maintain our World Tour status and thus be able to ride the Tour de France," he emphasizes. "In World Tour classics, for example, we will not bet on 1 horse. The tactic will then be to get into the final with 2 riders and finish as close as possible for the points. In the sprints we are all rooting for Sam Bennett. Because he is a top sprinter and can always win the maximum number of points with sprint victories."

According to Dewulf though, this goes against everything that cycling should be about. "What if you are away with 5 people and no one is driving? Do you have to play the engine to finish 4th or 5th and score points with certainty?" Dewulf questions. "Or can you play it more tactically and then let a group of 25 riders return with the risk that you will only finish 20th. These are issues that the team leaders will have to solve. But it sometimes seems a bit contradictory to what cycling is all about: winning."