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I would think it talking about a guy like Troy. Danny is on a new team so that would not be second year for with down racing year for the brand.
This is pure speculation, but given that I personally thought he was talking about someone like Matt Walker who does not have a social media presence but performed very well. Maybe contract update talks after winning the World Cup overall did not gain him much because of this.
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Specialized has a rich history in XCO MTB which include an Olympic gold medal, numerous world titles and countless World Cup victories. In 2021, we are delighted to announce a new team with riders who we believe will lead us to even more success. One of our goals is to invest and keep devoloping young talents like Sina Frei and Laura Stigger in a competitive environment while defending World Championship stripes and chasing world cup victories with Jordan Sarrou and Gerhard Kerschbaumer.
Jordan Sarrou is the 2020 UCI MTB World Champion and joins Specialized on a multi-year partnership. The 28-year-old Frenchman has enjoyed riding Specialized bikes from a young age and expressed great excitement in joining the factory team - “It’s a big motivation for me and I’m very excited to ride for Specialized; they are the best brand for mountain biking and cycling, so it’s a huge excitement for me to join the family now.”
Winning the world title in 2020 was a dream for Jordan. In 2021 he has even bigger dreams of competing in the Olympic games and defending his world title - “Firstly, my goal is to be at the start at the Tokyo Olympic Games, then to defend my world title and be on top for the World Cup races.”
Brian Gordon, MTB product manager in Morgan Hill, California is excited to work with the new team of riders. “Specialized Factory Racing is and has always been an integral part of product development at Specialized. There is no doubt that the energy and excitement around the 2021 team roster will motivate and inspire us to push the limits of product innovation in every aspect.” The close tie between the race team and product team at Specialized has been paramount in building the legacy of Specialized Factory Racing and the Epic platform. The 2021 program will only see this tie grow stronger, pushing product design further into the future.
Alongside Sarrou, Specialized have signed former Italian National Champion, Gerhard Kerschbaumer. ‘Geri’ as his team mates call him has set his sights on the 2021 World Title which will be contested in his home country, Val Di Sole, Italy. Apart from chasing the rainbow stripes, Kerschbaumer will focus on the World Cup series and an Olympic medal – “I have enjoyed my short time with the team. We are set up here at our first team camp and things are going very well. I come from a very small setup and having all of this support is very exciting for me. I never had a soigneur or a personal mechanic before and I need to get used to having access to all of this new information and product. I can learn a lot from Jordan who is the world champion and I look forward to 2021 with the team.”
Benno Willeit who has been with the global race team for more than 10 years makes a return to the Specialized Factory racing team as program manager. Willeit has spent the last few years pioneering the E-bike racing category for Specialized and his wealth of knowledge and experience on the world cup circuit will be invaluable to the team’s future success – “I spent the last few years with the E-bike and Enduro teams. It is great to be back with the XCO team, it is where I started my career and super happy to be here in Stellenbosch with our team. We have 3 riders who are new to the brand and it has been very educational for everyone to get a Retül fit and learn more about the equipment that they will be using for 2021 and beyond. The goal of this team camp is to get to know everyone intimately, but also generate content for our sponsors and riders. So far we are having a great time together and I am excited for the years ahead.”
Sina Frei has an impressive résumé which includes U/23 World Champion, U/23 European Champion, Swiss Champion and at 23, she is undoubtedly one of the women to look out for in the Elite category. Frei joins Specialized on a multi-year partnership and is excited to get back to racing - “It is really exciting to join Specialized. I am already enjoying the team environment and it is such a great group of people to be a part of, everything is very professional”.
Joining her teammates on the S-Works Epic for the first time, Sina has been impressed with the setup of her new bike and the Retül fit process – “From the first time I was on the bike, it has been super comfortable. Riding here in Stellenbosch, the bike is smooth and very precise in handling. I also had a Retül fit for the first time ever and the data is really interesting. I enjoy seeing the numbers and already, we have made a few tweaks which have improved my position on the bike.”
Another talented rider who has been supported by Specialized, but now makes the step up to the factory racing team is Austrian, Laura Stigger. While she could still race in the U/23 Category, the 20 year old Stigger made the decision to race in the Elite women’s category and has already made huge impressions on the mountain biking community.
“I am very comfortable in this group. It is nice to get to know everyone better and I am excited to spend the next few years with this group of people. It is my first time in Stellenbosch and it is a big change from the Cross Country skiing that I have been doing back home in Austria. The riding, the food, the people are all awesome and I am very happy to be here.”
Laura has big goals for the 2021 season including a World Championship medal and podiums at the XCO World Cups.
The Specialized Factory Racing Team will focus on the UCI MTB XCO World Cup season including the Olympic games, Sea Otter Classic, Specialized market activations and National Championships. The team is proud to be supported by SRAM, Rockshox, Wahoo, Cliff, HT Components, Retül, Roval, Motrex and Supacaz.
Photos by Michal Cerveny
I haven't been a fan of some of the graphics on their bikes the last few years. There is a romance to the brand.
Always fancied a sniper as a quick trail bike if they had done a raw carbon.
Wonder what on earth Gwin etc would do if they went pop.
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Regarding Intense, Gwin owns the team, not the company. It was well documented at that point that he wanted off the Mob, because he wanted to do the things his way. This also coincided with a moment when Intense brought in a fresh influx of capital, but I believe Dungey is gone in the mean time. I am not sure how Intense are doing or how well their bikes/e-bikes are selling, but I'm sure, even if in financial trouble, they'd bounce back somehow, because their brand and heritage is far too valuable. As an Intense owner and fan (who could still tell that he didn't like quite a few of their bikes), I sigh a bit to the fact that the bikes are now made overseas and are carbon only, but I'm happy that Jeff still does mules and prototypes in Temecula. I was very tempted to get myself one of these newer carbon ones, but decided to spend my money locally instead.
Speaking of legendary brands, does anyone know who owns Iron Horse at this point?
Mx
He scrambled and did the deal with Intense, wreaking havoc in the Intense Factory Racing team that was running Sram gear with Jack Moir, Dean Lucas and Charlie Harrison, with the latter two parting ways with the team and Moir suffering for the next season on gear he didn't like (the hand picked stuff by Gwin), after which he left too.
The team went from the rad dudes in colorful kit with surfing vibes (my god was it fun watching videos of the Intense train going down the track in training runs) to what we have now...
If they fixed their confusing distribution and doubled down on Enduro and trail they could be killing it, but as long as they hold onto the DH dream too hard they'll struggle.
I'd be interested to see how the Knolly issue affects them although as mentioned, I think it's a bit bullshit.
I love the look of the raw protos they fabricate for the races.
I am following Team Rumours threads since the beginning and I can't recall the detailed story about Gwin's departure being told here, but I could be wrong, of course.
Basically, what you are saying is that if YT stayed in the game, the shuffle that followed wasn't possible; kind of a butterfly effect. Meaning that Gwin wouldn't have made the deal with Intense and messed up with an awesome team's vibe, although I'm sure his intentions weren't those. That polka-dot wearing yeee-hawing team with Jack, Deano and Charlie was the most fun I've seen on the circuit in years and I have whined over that numerous times since it's demise; I'm totally with you on this one.
Not a fan of contrafactual history, but I can't help wondering if Intense and YT would have been better now if the above shift hadn't happen. Intense not spending money on a new DH bike for Gwin to be happy with and focusing on their trail/enduro bike instead and YT continuing to develop their line, as I have the feeling they kind of have a pretty mediocre product out there, that isn't pushed by the price factor like it used to be. But who knows...
Mx
As for talking about it here, Page 29, I even quoted your post (replying to Verbl Kint) when you wrote he went his own way. I replied by saying they pulled the rug from under him
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