Order! Order! Team Sky becomes Team Ineos
This episode of The Cycling Podcast kicks off with confirmation that Team Sky will become Team Ineos in time for the Tour de Yorkshire at the end of next month.
Richard Moore, Lionel Birnie and Daniel Friebe discuss the deal that has saved Team Sky's Dave Brailsford, their riders and staff months of uncertainty and speculation over their future and, arguably, could make the team even stronger.
It's also been a busy week of racing with two World Tour stage races and some exciting, aggressive action.
We discuss Paris-Nice, which was won by Team Sky's young Colombian Egan Bernal. The Race to the Sun also featured two sprint victories for Ireland's Sam Bennett – but will that change Bora-Hansgrohe's minds when it comes to selecting their team for the Giro d'Italia? And was Simon Yates's time trial victory actually a surprise?
Meanwhile, in Italy Julian Alaphilippe catapulted his name up the list of favourites for Saturday's Milan-Sanremo by outfoxing the sprinters and climbers in the space of a few days.
In the third part, Daniel rattles off his list of 18 potential Milan-Sanremo winners and we discuss what the early season races tell us about the opening Monument of the season.
The Cycling Podcast is supported by Rapha and Science in Sport.
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This episode is sponsored by Harry's. To get your trial razor set for £3.95, go to Harrys.com/cycling. You get a ergonomic weighted handle, five-blade cartridge set, foaming shave gel and travel blade cover. Be smooth like the Buffalo, not scruffy like the other two.
FRIENDS OF THE PODCAST
Everyone who has signed up as a Friend of the Podcast for 2019 can download the four-part, four-hour audiobook The Grand Tour Diaries and our first episode on the Dutch Jumbo-Visma's attempts to close the gap to Team Sky now. Our latest episode is called Opening Weekend and focuses on the first cobbled Classic of the season, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. We will release at least eight more episodes over the course of the year. It costs £15 to become a Friend on our website.