In late 2023, talk of a potentially game-changing merger between Soudal - Quick-Step and the then named, Jumbo-Visma were running rife. Ultimately, it wasn't to be, much to the relief on longtime Soudal - Quick-Step boss, Patrick Lefevere.
Always outspoken, Lefevere is never one to shy away from sharing his thoughts on a variety of topics. On the De Rode Lantaarn podcast, the Belgian opened up about his thoughts on the proposed merger of two of cycling's biggest teams. "Richard Plugge (head of Visma ed.) always said: you are my master. Now the student has passed the master after all," he begins.
"Rich people came into the picture and they wanted to set up a new team as a challenge: a team that would win everything in the next ten years. I found achieving that before 2024 very difficult," Lefevere recalls of the initial discussions, admitting he was even offered a good role within the project. "They saw no obstacles. I could get a role as an advisor."
Despite this, Lefevere was never fully onboard with the idea. "I knew it was going to be a bloodbath. Riders come and go. But personnel are like the foundation of a team. I am a human being and I stand among my people. I didn't immediately think: this will be a failure, but I did think of the consequences for the people," he explains.
One way Lefevere wanted to look after 'his people' was to form a second team if the merger was to go through. "Both teams had 28 riders. The only option then, not to be derogatory, was to maintain a b-team," he says.
"We canceled a first meeting with the team in October. There was a lot of tension," Lefevere concludes. "In the end it didn't go through and we ended it in a fair manner. The relief was very great, we had a good dinner and expressed that relief together."
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