From Strava KOM hunter to World Tour - Jack Burke in talks with 4 teams but a '30% chance' of making last-minute transfer

Jack Burke has been on the spotlight quite a bit over the past few weeks, having toured around the Alps and climbed up mountains such as the Passo del Mortirollo, Passo dello Stelvio and Alpe d'Huez with the fastest times on Strava, It's an all-or-nothing for the Canadian this winter, but he reveals that four World Tour teams have contacted him recently.

“I have actually been trying to become a World Tour rider my whole life and have even been invited by teams for tests and training camps a few times. I had been riding for Continental teams for a few years, but that ended in 2022 after I was hit by a car during a training," Burke explained in an interview with Wielerflits. This crash left him with severe injuries including a brain hemorrhage and he was shocked to learn that one of the two Austrian teams he raced for did not cover for expenses for his injuries.

“I thought I had health insurance through my team, but they had stopped it a few months earlier without telling me. So I was not only left with serious injuries, but also with enormous hospital bills that I had to pay.”

This caused a huge issue in his career, as he did not continue in a pro team into 2023 and could no longer have the calendar he hoped for at hand. This year he returned to North America to race for another club team, but is making his bid with an unusual but quite successful way to get exposure.

“I have a podcast and in it I once spoke to a coach. I found his story interesting and he started coaching me, so I started training again in May of this year," he continues. "At that time it was still a question of what for, but in August I was back in shape and started riding and winning amateur races. I kept improving, but there are no more races at the end of the season. Then I decided to try the Zwift Academy, but I didn’t even make it to the first round. That wasn’t necessarily a goal, but I noticed that it wasn’t going well and I was disappointed. I then took a rest day and decided to test myself on the Stelvio, which went exceptionally well.”

He chose the right time to do it as well, as all road teams are currently not racing and it's easier to get through to the spotlight. And his achievements have earned him quite a few new contacts. “It’s all quite informal, via social media, but there is definitely interest. The problem is that it’s so late in the season that it’s hard to get a spot. If I had to estimate now, I think there’s a 30% chance that I’ll be riding in the WorldTour next year.”

But at the same time, as we're in December, it becomes increasingly difficult to find a team with an available spot or budget to sign a new rider. But there is still time, as well as teams that would surely be interesting in having a rider such as the Canadian in their lineup. “This was a perfect year where I won all the races I started and where I got three famous KOMs. If that is not enough, then I don't know what else I can do next year.”

“My biggest dream is to become one of the best domestiques for GC riders, like Sepp Kuss. He’s also a friend of mine, we raced together before. My hope is that if a team goes to a Grand Tour for the GC, they’ll select me first, regardless of the leader. Because they know that I’m the best support, that’s what I dream of. I’m better at helping others get a good result than racing for a result myself," he concluded.