"We feel a wave of panic” - Team managers having "a lot of calls from agents" in wake of B&B Hotels uncertainty

With B&B Hotels-KTM riders being told by sporting director Jérôme Pineau to look for employment elsewhere it's now been revealed that managers of some of the other French teams have had "a lot of calls from agents, riders".

According to an unnamed riders agent speaking to Ouest France, his phone calls to team managers have been met with disappointing results. "I knew what to expect when calling and inevitably, I had no surprise. Almost all the teams no longer have room to bring in a rider!"

Available space in the French teams is so little that according to reports only Arkéa-Samsic and AG2R-Citroën could accommodate. "We don't have a lot of margin" Vincent Lavenu, boss of AG2R-Citroën said, "generally, in my budgets, I leave room for additional hiring." That space could soon be filled too because Lavenu's phone has been “ringing a lot. Unfortunately, we feel a wave of panic.”

Even below the World Tour level, there is not an abundance of spaces for riders looking to switch teams. TotalEnergies for example claim to be "no longer in a position to recruit." The uncertainty around riders' futures is something no one ever wants to see and with the 2023 season getting nearer by the day the scramble for the few remaining spots sadly looks set to grow.