that ultimately went to Remco Evenepoel<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe big question was why he would leave Lidl-Trek, one of the strongest squads in the WorldTour. Ciccone said the decision was simple. He said it came down to wanting a change after spending much of his career with the same group.<\/p>\n
Why the need to leave Lidl-Trek<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter eight years with the same team, this is a big decision, but one I genuinely wanted to make,\u201d Ciccone said. \u201cI feel I still have a lot to give, and I needed a new challenge, fresh motivation and an environment where I could feel at home.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Italian said he knew early on after chatting with the Pinarello Q36.5 gang that he was stoked to join.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom our very first meeting, I felt something different,\u201d he said. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t just about numbers, results or technical discussions. I felt real trust and appreciation, and that the people behind this project genuinely wanted me here.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the new team<\/p>\n
But he also said that a good team isn\u2019t just about stuff on paper. Ciccone said getting along with your fellow riders and staff is clutch.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, the human side of a team comes first. I race with my heart, and the people around me are what give me energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
The tech on the team setup appealed to the climber. Like most riders who want to go uphill fast, he said he pays close attention to his bike and the equipment he uses.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we started discussing the technical side, I was impressed,\u201d Ciccone said. \u201cThe attention to detail, the equipment, the technology and the ambition to keep improving really stood out. I\u2019m very particular about my bike, and I could immediately see how much care goes into every aspect of performance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ciccone and Pidcock<\/p>\n
There is also a pretty obvious Italian connection, because Pinarello. So that tracks. But as far as the team Ciccone will join superstar Tom Pidcock. His arrival definitely beefs up the team\u2019s GC ambitions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m also really looking forward to racing alongside Tom Pidcock,\u201d Ciccone said. \u201cI\u2019ve always admired him. Not only because of his talent, but because he\u2019s a rider who thinks differently and isn\u2019t afraid to do things his own way. I hope we can bring something extra to each other and build something special together.\u201d<\/p>\n
It also means a new teammate for Sainte-Lucie-des-Laurentides, Que\u2019s Nick Zukowsky, who has also had a great year. We\u2019ve seen the former national champ in all kinds of breaks, as well as being an absolute workhorse for his team.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo all the fans who have supported me over the years, I want to say that this is a change I truly believe in,\u201d Ciccone said. \u201cI still have the same passion, the same hunger and the same desire to give everything on the bike. Now it\u2019s time to take that energy into a new chapter, together.\u201d<\/p>\n
The road season is almost done for the year, but 2027 is around the corner!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s transfer season, and this one is a big one. We knew a few days ago that Giulio…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":930291,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[49,48,635,82],"class_list":["post-930290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-cycling","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/930290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=930290"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/930290\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/930291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=930290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=930290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=930290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}