Contacted about recent rumours that Oleg Tinkov will move his backing from Saxo Tinkoff to the Cannondale squad next year, the latter team has said that it doesn’t want to comment on the speculated deal.
Tinkov was openly critical about Saxo Tinkoff team leader Alberto Contador during the Tour de France, stating that he was overpaid. He threatened to abandon his backing of the Bjarne Riis’ squad and on July 25th, four days after the end of the Tour, Riis admitted that things were over.
Tinkov did the same later on that day, but said that he would remain involved in cycling.
“From 2014 Tinkoff Credit Systems bank will stop sponsoring Riis Cycling,” he wrote on his Facebook page. “We have decided it for two reasons: Poor sporting merits in 2013 season [and] our own cycling project.
“From January 2014, we will start to build our own cycling team "Tinkoff Credit Systems". This will be BIG project with 5 years commitment.”
Two days ago he indicated that a deal had been done, although he didn’t name the squad concerned.
“I have now my team. I have good partners,” he wrote on Twitter. “We will announce soon. Show must go on! All the best to Saxo-Tinkoff riders!!!”
However the name Cannondale has been suggested recently of late by various media sources.
Contacted by VeloNation today on the matter, Cannondale press officer Paolo Barbieri would neither confirm nor deny that talks had taken place.
“We don’t have anything to say about this at the moment. From the team and Cannondale, there is nothing to say,” he stated. “It is just rumours of the media, we don’t have any comment.”
Tinkov previously had a continental team Tinkoff Restaurants in 2006, which then evolved into the pro continental Tinkoff Credit Systems squad. This existed between 2007 and 2008 and rode the Giro d’Italia in its second year, where Pavel Brutt and Vasil Kiryienka won stages.
He was edged out of the team when it was taken over by Katusha, but returned to professional cycling in June of last year when he became second title sponsor of the Saxo Bank team.