In 2025 there will be eight Azzurri players who will be under 23 in a I have to team up: Stefano Viezzi, Lorenzo Mark Finn, Andrea Bessega, Davide Stella, Enea Sambinello, David Zanutta, Ludovico Mellano, and Luca Attolini. A ninth driver joins them: Roberto Capello. Capello will be racing his second junior year abroad, with Team Grenke-Auto Eder. A massive migration, a sign that our boys are attracting the attention of the big teams that are ready to invest in them. Let's address the issue with Dino Salvoldi, a member of the junior national team, who remained in contact with them until a few months ago.
«Let's start by saying – Salvoldi hooks us – that I don't know the motivations of each of them. Some talk, ask for advice, while others go their own way.. What makes going to a different I have to team up, or in a formation such as the Vf Group-Bardiani-CSF Faizanè, is the prospect that these realities offer in the medium term. Usually the boys sign four-year contracts with the "two plus two" formula that is: two seasons in I have to team up and two years already in the WorldTour (the Reverberi team doesn't have a development team, so the guys immediately turn professional, ed.)».
Programming
The big difference that development trainings offer is a level calendar and the security of having, in most cases, already in place agreements to transition to professionals. This is not always the case, and many young people still choose to make the leap to the under 23s in a I have to team up rather than stay in Italy.
«In these teams – continues Salvoldi – the riders face a high quality and mostly international calendar, something that an Italian continental team struggles to offer, there are some positive exceptions. In a team development we face the season with a different schedule. We run a little less but for objectives, the kids learn about the functional characteristics of the professional world. We don't look at the continuity of performance but at growthThese are discussions that go beyond the "it's too early, it's too late" argument.
Are all the kids who pass in 2025 ready?
I think so, all with different possibilities and characteristics. The teams are also different, so generalizing becomes a risk.
For example, Lorenzo Finn continues a journey he began in 2024, when he was still a junior.
You didn't say a name by chance. He is the example of a rider who has the natural qualities to become a professional who competes for great results.It's a whole different way of racing, geared towards winning. Finn is the example of someone who's ready for a certain type of activity right away, last season being a prime example (top photo: Maximilian Fries).
Then there are those who have earned this opportunity through results, like Bessega e Sambinello.
These two have earned their space in their respective I have to team up thanks to the results obtained by juniors. Maybe for the career profile they will be able to do it will not be top level, something comparable to those who have not had the same opportunity.
For example?
Andrea Donati and also his brother David. The second, who is a year older, He played his first season as an under 23 at Biesse Carrera and then moved to the devo team of Red Bull-BORA-hansgroheThe same path is in store for Andrea, who will race with Biesse in 2025.
Andrea Donati didn't achieve great results as a junior...
That's not all that matters. Those who make selections within development teams should look at the performance-related outcomeIt's one thing to win a world championship Lorenzo Finn, another is to win many races while always staying close behind. A figure in charge of finding talent should focus more on performanceResults only matter so much.
For those coming from Italian junior teams, is such a leap too big?
No. Cycling is evolving, and this process is part of a normal process of adaptation that also involves junior teams. What was done until a few years ago is no longer enough.For young people, approaching these new professional realities is simply a stimulus. They feel followed, controlled and are dominated by curiosity., as is right with young people. They get into a routine, it's like a job.
Then there are Attolini, Mellano and Zanutta who have moved to XDS Astana Development, consider their transition to be “softer”.
If you mean it's less impactful because they have more Italians, I'd say no. I don't know what schedule they'll have, but we're still talking about a development team for a WorldTour team.
What do you think of these three guys?
In my opinion Mellano and Sambinello are comparable. They are the guys who had the most continuity during the last seasonIn terms of placings, they never missed a race and were always among the best in the most important races on the Italian calendar. Zanutta is a quality rider, he is an example of those who have been valued for numbers and not for the results obtained, as done by UAE Team Gen Z with Davide Stella.
It is Roberto Capello, who replaces Finn at Grenke-Auto Eder.
He is an athlete who has a lot of quality when climbing, despite being at the beginning of his second year as a junior. This is a rider who is used to doing certain training volumesTo translate these numbers into results He needs to improve a lot tactically and in his bike riding, but it's in the right place. Grenke-Auto Eder doesn't hire kids at random...
