OFFICIAL: Astana Qazaqstan steals Alpecin-Deceuninck's best climber for next season

Italian rider Nicola Conci will join Astana Qazaqstan Team next season. The contract with the rider is set for two years and covers the 2025 and 2026 seasons. The rider who currently races for Alpecin-Deceuninck excels in hilly one-day races and smaller stage races. His new team also hopes the 27-year-old can pull off a big result as a stage hunter at Grand Tours.

"For me, joining Astana Qazaqstan Team is a big step in my career. The Astana project is well-known for its longevity and rich history, with important victories achieved by riders I’ve followed long before my own professional career. I’ve been fortunate enough to meet some of these riders and even become teammates with them, like Vincenzo Nibali," Conci explains what attracts him in the Kazakh team.

"Astana Qazaqstan Team is renowned for its family-like atmosphere, something that has always attracted me, and I believe I will fit in well with this team. I already know some of the riders, and I’ve even raced alongside a few, such as Christian Scaroni. So, I am confident this transition will be a positive one. I am fully committed to working hard for the team’s goals as well as pursuing my own ambitions."

"Nicola Conci showed great promise at the U23 level and in the early years of his career. Recently, things haven’t gone quite as expected, but we see good potential in him that can help the team achieve its objectives. Conci can strengthen our group in hilly classics and short stage races, and we also see him as a strong domestique or stage hunter in Grand Tours, where he already has some experience," said Alexandr Vinokurov, General Manager of Astana Qazaqstan Team.