UAE set to lose its only sprinter - Juan Sebastián Molano looking for sole leader role in Belgian team

Lotto-Intermarché are having a difficult season and 2027 can be a very tough year, as many of its leaders are leaving the team. However, the Belgian team seems to be close to signing a new leader and potentially saving its winter period: Juan Sebastián Molano.

Lotto is a team that over this decade has developed several top talents, but has not been able to keep them. Florian Vermeersch, Maxim van Gils and Alec Segaert are all riders that are currently leaders in teams above Lotto's rank; all quality classics specialists who have obtained big results this season.

Equally, it currently has Lennert van Eetvelt and Arnaud de Lie. The amount of Belgian talents climbing up the ranks is high and Lotto has had many of them in its own development ranks, turning them into leaders at the elite level. But the bright moment does not last forever.

Van Eetvelt is likely heading towards NSN Cycling Team next season and Arnaud de Lie's departure is also given as a certain - with Tudor likely as his destination, despite the Swiss team also reportedly signing Kaden Groves alongside him.

The team has lost a lot of talent and not been able to replace it, whilst last winter's merger with Intermarché - Wanty has not led to the signing of Biniam Girmay into the team as hoped.

Hence, the Belgian team is forced to go into the market in search of new leaders, able to take strong results and also accumulate UCI points, something that will be important as several ProTeam-level outfits are currently above the level of a few World Tour teams.

Het Laatste Nieuws reported that the attempts to sign Frenchmen Alex Baudin and Emillien Jeannière have failed but the team has its eye on a new potential leader: Juan Sebastián Molano.

Molano is a two-time Vuelta a España winner and the victor of last year's Classic Brugge-De Panne. This year he won a stage at the Tour of Oman early in the year, but hasn't been successful since. In his absence, UAE would be forced to sign a new sprinter in the market, as it would then lack an option for the fast finishes at World Tour level.