'Mark Cavendish should not overestimate his market value in the euphoria of the Tour,' says Patrick Lefevere
The two parties have not got closer to agreeing a new deal since having dinner together after the conclusion of the Tour de France
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Mark Cavendish's future, with Deceuninck - Quick-Step or otherwise, has not become much clearer since the end of the Tour de France, says the Belgian team's boss Patrick Lefevere.
Since having dinner with Cavendish after the Tour had concluded, a new deal was discussed but no agreement made, and Lefevere says there has not been any progress since.
“The question, of course, is what happens to Cavendish," Lefevere said in his weekly column for Het Nieuwsblad (opens in new tab). "After the Tour we had dinner in the star restaurant Boury in Roeselare, but nobody has become much wiser there. We talked about business for a while: the sponsors suggested a campaign in which they wanted to play Mark image-wise, but he himself did not think that was in line with his remuneration at the moment."
Lefevere is seemingly steadfast in his opinion on how much he wants to pay Cavendish in a new deal, saying the winner of 34 Tour de France stages shouldn't overestimate his market value after a comeback that saw him take four stage wins at the most recent edition of the French Grand Tour.
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“I then suggested to enjoy the food and put the conversations about contracts and numbers in the fridge for a while. The premise is simple though: we want Mark to stay with the team and I think he knows himself that the grass isn't greener anywhere. Only he should not overestimate his market value in the euphoria of the Tour. If everyone acts normally, we'll figure it out."
Fabio Jakobsen has capped off his comeback from injury with a stage victory at the Vuelta a España and is signed to Deceuninck - Quick-Step until 2023, while Alvaro Hodeg will move to UAE Team Emirates next year, meaning there is space in the Belgian team's sprinting department, which could be filled up by a returning Elia Viviani.
“For the position of third sprinter, I am thinking concretely about Elia Viviani," Lefevere revealed.
"At least as concrete as my budget for next year allows. He has had his best years with our team, but of course his prize is in line with his palmarès. Viviani or a younger and therefore cheaper sprinter: that's the decision I have to make. I'm not in a rush for now."
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Hi. I'm Cycling Weekly's Weekend Editor. I like writing offbeat features and eating too much bread when working out on the road at bike races.
Before joining Cycling Weekly I worked at The Tab and I've also written for Vice, Time Out, and worked freelance for The Telegraph (I know, but I needed the money at the time so let me live).
I also worked for ITV Cycling between 2011-2018 on their Tour de France and Vuelta a España coverage. Sometimes I'd be helping the producers make the programme and other times I'd be getting the lunches. Just in case you were wondering - Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen had the same ham sandwich every day, it was great.
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