Alberto Bettiol is anticipated to change from EF Education-EasyPost to Astana Qazaqstan through the August switch window, as Astana apparently use their new funding from China to right away strengthen their roster and so pursue UCI rating factors and a spot within the 2026 WorldTour.
Mid-season transfers are uncommon in skilled biking however are allowed between August 1-15 beneath UCI guidelines. The rider and the 2 groups concerned should strike a cope with the UCI then giving closing approval. Cyclingnews understands that the 2 groups have reached a deal, with the UCI anticipated to provide the inexperienced mild for the deal after the Paris Olympics finish on Sunday.
Ciro Scognamiglio from La Gazzetta dello Sport first revealed information of the switch on Thursday morning, with Daniel Benson explaining via his Substack page that Bettiol will agree phrases for a brand new and really profitable three and a half yr contract with Astana Qazaqstan. Cyclingnews has obtained details about the anticipated deal from two sources.
Cyclingnews reported through the first week of the Tour de France that Chinese carbon producer XDS Carbon-Tech will spend money on the Astana crew, sparking the arrival of a significant Chinese sponsor within the males’s WorldTour and “important modifications’ within the crew.
The deal may enable EF Education-EasyPost to signal a further rider within the switch window or free-up funds for a brand new signing for 2025. Bettiol is amongst 15 riders on the finish of the contracts in 2024. Simon Carr has already revealed he’ll be a part of Cofidis, whereas Rigoberto Uran will retire. EF Education-EasyPost have nonetheless to announce any new signings.
Bettiol gained the Italian nationwide highway race title in June, Milan-Turin in March and was fifth at Milan-San Remo. He has scored 1434 factors up to now through the 2024 season. They will stay with EF Education-EasyPost for the three-year crew rating that’s vitally essential awarding the following WorldTour licences for 2026 however any factors that Bettiol scores with Astana in 2024 will go to their factors whole.
According to knowledge analyst Raúl Banqueri, Astana are at present ranked twenty first and so danger lacking out on a WorldTour licence for 2026-2028. They want to attain 3,300 factors greater than Team dsm-firmenich PostNL within the subsequent 18 months, if they’re to change into one of many 18 WorldTour groups in 2026. They additionally want to attain extra factors than Arkéa-B&B Hotel and Uno-X Mobility, who’re additionally concentrating on promotion. Cofidis are additionally prone to relegation if rival groups rating considerably extra factors within the subsequent 18 months.
Bettiol may very well be the primary of a number of new signings for Astana for 2024 and 2025 as they chase UCI rating factors.
The Italian may assist rating treasured factors within the closing months of 2024 and is more likely to experience a sequence of one-day races the place extra factors are on provide, similar to Bretagne Classic-Ouest-France, the Bemer Cyclassics in Hamburg and the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec and Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal in Canada.
