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Sadly I agree. I think just that Neko likes him, and sees potential, but fading to me.
I cannot see a way forward for Pivot and therefore BK. I mean how can Pivot look at 25 and write a check for 26?
The only Way I see is BK's Youtube channel but, Thats been lacking alot lately + the switch to insta360 has really downgraded the videos.
Is PFR going to a miss WC spot and only be a wild card in 26?
I think I recall Neko at some point saying that he brought Angel on board because he felt that Angel is a rider that can give good feedback as far as development of the bike.
pretty sure this was on downtime podcast
Who will replace Camille Balanche?
If the rumours of Dak off Mondraker are true I wonder if he might have a go on yeti.
Do we simply toss around names and teams or is there at least anything to rely on?
The truth is right now I bet contracts are not even signed so legit rumors of people talking to teams could prove to not be true. So may as well guess your favorite ride / team combo!
Double O is a Martin Whiteley guy too, that’d be logical.
YT sucks.
So, I have 0 insider information, just pure speculation.
If points stay with the team this year, and it's calculated in October, could there be a situation where a team signs a former/current YT rider to a contract this year and capture their points? I don't remember reading anything in the UCI about a cumulative rolling calculation of team points. Just a snapshot at the end of the year.
I know UCI contracts in road have language around if a rider isn't paid they they are immediately released from their contract a free to sign with another team. Would be a wild way to score points.
Vali Höll has no points though. She earned a bunch of points for someone else. The team-first setup has been icky from the get go, but again: the money guys love it.
(I do hope there’s a way to get her and her points to a viable team like you say…)
Even if she doesn't bring in points to a team prior to next year, whatever team she signs with will be mos likely getting some good points at round 1...
O Callaghan is managed by Net performance according to his Instagram. And I also don't think there's any professional relationship between Whiteley and Frameworks now.
If yt can’t fulfill the contract obligations of being a Uci team then the riders are free agents. Not sure if it’s reached that point yet. A ride can’t just sign with another team though as that has to be done in the transfer window
That YT world talent tour contest thing where OO got hurt on day one but still won because Whiteley was like yer the guy and how FW Mullaly seems to trust him and im just thinking there are open communication channels. It’d make sense.
But who knows maybe he’s already on Samsung
If YT announces they cannot pay these riders I will begin sabotaging every Decoy with 3” tires I see.
Ya, your point is the one I was circling around.
The second part of this fever dream thought experiment is -
Soooo... an interesting outcome would be: YT folds and declares it immediately, a riders signs to a new team "for the period starting at the moment announced for the dissolution" (and probably before the last race), they sign with a new team before October 21st 2025, then those 2025 accrued points go to the new team for the 2026 team raking.
Great. So all we need is for the sneaky guys who have never done the right thing to be transparent and responsible and do the right thing!
American rider who might need a team and an American team who might need a rider 🤷🏼♂️
weird business-guy thought. If YT is truly in a form of re-structuring or bankruptcy protection, they may not have much of a say as to when they announce their racing plans for 2026. Doing so would potentially end up essentially being a deprecation of an asset of the business. A lost money asset granted, but still a marketing expenditure which should point to some business case of increased revenue somehow on a balance sheet. Sometimes, even smart things like stopping hemorrhaging of money on stupid things, can get tied up in the reality that you cannot do things that change the imagine or evaluation of the company during this time period.
Pretty sure this is what YT has tried to maintain as to why they couldn’t fulfill people’s orders or refund their money. They’ve claimed their hands were legally bound. I would assume that expenses on and assets of their race team would have similar issues. I don’t think that, at the end of the day though, customers and fans are going to be very satisfied with that explanation.
So something else to consider? If YT is out then all teams would move up at least one ranking spot. As of today, this would put teams like Rogue racing and Santa Cruz Goodman in the top 15. I don't know what the fee is that WBD charges elite teams to register but I imagine it's not cheap these days. If the teams can't pay it, what does that mean for them?
Not so weird and I think you're totally on point. There is a 2026 registration deadline however which they might blow.
Funny, this being an orderly German company restructuring it wouldn't surprise me if they had to set aside money to pay the team for the remainder season.
Net Performance are also involved in Aon Racing if I am right? it would be cool to see OO make a move over to them and ride the Gamux and they could do with a few points
Angel was also cheap for Frameworks because he was still getting paid out of his old contract.
Do we think Rosa Zierl will get picked up by a different team for '26? (If there's not a Cube contract for '26)
Absolutely killing it.
Is she first or second year junior? I'm thinking 1st year, probably already has a deal.. 2nd year, maybe not, but Cube should have an offer for her moving into elite..
Assuming YT weathers the storm and continues as a company, does anyone think athletes will sign with them in the future? Off the top of my head this is the third time athletes have been left hanging by them because the abruptly shut down their DH teams. Most notably Aaron Gwin, Dak and now this crop of athletes. Please correct me if I am wrong.
Depends on the money I'd say. Gwin was paid handsomely to help develop the bike back in his days.
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