Duo have been highly impressive in recent years
HTC Highroad sprinter Mark Renshaw looks like he could be heading to a different squad than his team-mate Mark Cavendish, thus ending what has been a very successful partnership in recent seasons.
The Australian is a very rapid rider in his own right, but has chosen to dedicate himself to helping Cavendish to a staggering haul of Tour de France stages plus other victories. That’s earned him the plaudits of being the best leadout man in modern cycling.
However Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf claimed on Wednesday that Renshaw was moving to the Rabobank squad for two years. It said that he would be the team’s lead sprinter in the Tour de France, and that he would be able to try to build on personal successes such as a stage plus overall victory in this year’s Tour of Qatar.
According to De Telegraaf, he was offered substantially more money than by Sky Procycling, which is deemed most likely to be Cavendish’s destination. The latter has said that he has chosen his team, but won’t officially confirm it until later this month.
Renshaw was asked about the links to Rabobank; he declined to confirm reports, but didn’t deny them either. “Bob Stapleton (owner of HTC-Highroad) doesn’t want us to talk about transfers before September 1,” he said, according to AFP. “It’s a bit silly, but that’s the way it is.
“All I can say is that I’ve been in discussions with Rabobank.”
If he and Cavendish are indeed going to race on separate teams, it’s something that former top British rider Chris Boardman previously said should be avoided. “It would be absolutely crazy for him to not take at least Renshaw,” Boardman told the BBC recently.
“Cavendish on his own is still a formidable sprinter but he would not have had the volume of wins without the team behind him.
“[He should take] probably Renshaw and Eisel because there was a number of stages he won in this year’s Tour de France and, credit to him, he praised his team and knew they put him in the right position. Wherever he goes he’d be foolish not to take those people with him.”
If De Telegraaf is correct in its information, it may simply have boiled down to a question of money. It’s too early to say, though; the near future should see clarification about who is going where, and why. At that point, a full dissection of the situation can take place.
Until then, and, in fact, until the end of the season, the successful partnership will continue.