"I want to be the best version of myself next year" - Michael Morkov looking to become Fabio Jakobsen's right-hand man

By many's standards, Michael Morkov is just about the most successful leadout man in the current peloton. In 2022 new faces appeared however, and the Dane didn't have a fixed position within the team, but next year he's looking to insert himself as the key man in Fabio Jakobsen's leadout.

“Fabio and I haven’t really raced together very much. We have usually raced a couple of races a year together for the last four years, but we haven’t had continuous periods," Morkov said in an interview with Feltet. "I’ve told the team that from next year I’d like to race even more with Fabio, so we can gain some experience together, also in the smaller races. So then we will be sharper for the biggest races.”

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Whilst over the last couple of seasons Morkov rode alongside Sam Bennett, and on occasion Mark Cavendish, 2022 proved to be different. He rode as a support rider for the Manxman mainly but Cavendish almost finished his season in June. He helped Jakobsen to a win at the Tour de France aswell, but as the Dutchman had his own block assembled Morkov did not have a definite role this year. He's looking to change that.

“I think that it is a question of adaptation from both sides. I don’t want to take any of his instincts away from him. He races his own sprint without any help from others. He almost rides the leadout for himself and wins by a landslide," Morkov added. "I won’t take that away from him. Therefore, I will never ask him to follow me 100 percent, if there is something else that works for him."

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This season Florian Sénéchal and Yves Lampaert consolidated themselves as the key men for Jakobsen, and they keep their position in the team into the coming season. However, Morkov intends on boosting the success of the team even further in the sprints - whilst Tim Merlier will have a secondary block, however likely to connect with Morkov throughout the season on occasion.

“But it is clear that we will have to find a way where we can both get the most out of each other. I am by no means about to end my career. I want to be the best version of myself next year, and I am motivated to become that," he concluded. 

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