Patrick Lefevere doesn’t want to sign Peter Sagan because of star rider’s entourage
The Deceuninck - Quick-Step boss said he doesn’t want ‘a team within his team’
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

Patrick Lefevere has said he doesn’t want to sign Peter Sagan because of the star rider’s entourage.
Sagan, former three-time world champion, is famed for taking a team of riders and staff with him during each trance, who all form part of contract negotiations for the Slovakian star.
As Sagan’s contract with Bora-Hansgrohe comes to an end this season, he has been linked to a number of potential new squads in recent weeks, with Lefevere’s Deceuninck - Quick-Step one of the more enticing rumours.
Team boss Lefevere has now confirmed in his column for Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad that he was involved in talks with Sagan’s agent, but that he put a halt to the talks because he “doesn’t want a team within his team.”
Lefevere said that the Sagan rumours started as Deceuninck - Quick-Step signed a new long-term deal with bike sponsor Specialized, which will run until 2027.
As part of the contract talks, Deceuninck - Quick-Step owner Zdenek Bakala went cycling with Specialized CEO Mike Sinyard, where Sagan’s name came up.
Sagan also has a long-term sponsorship deal with Specialized, with the team’s owner Bakala suggesting that Sagan could join Deceuninck.
“Everything fitted together well, but I immediately put on the brakes,” Lefevere said.
Sagan’s agent Giovanni Lombardi then wanted to open talks, according to Lefevere, adding that he met with the agent.
Lombardi said that Sagan’s entourage of 11 riders and staff was not set in stone, as many of Sagan’s personal team had found new jobs.
But the Sagan camp did want to bring eight people along, Lefevere said, with Sagan now believed to be in talks with another team willing to take on his entourage.
Lefevere said: “Great of Sagan that he take such good care of his faithful, but I don’t want a team within my team. That cannot be reconciled with the Wolfpack philosophy.”
Sagan’s current entourage at Bora-Hansgrohe includes four riders - Erik Baska, Maciej Bodnar, Daniel Oss and his brother Juraj - along with two mechanics, two caretakers, a sports director, a press officer, and a hospitality manager, according to Lefevere.
Earlier this week Sagan was linked to French ProTeam Total Direct Energie, who are believed to be pursuing WorldTour status and need a star rider to lead the team.
Thank you for reading 10 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
-
-
From false promises and heartbreak to hope - How Heidi Franz is bouncing back from the last-minute collapse of B&B Hotels
Mind games, false promises and a life left in limbo. How American Heidi Franz navigated the B&B Hotels demise and found a kickstart to her new European life
By Anne-Marije Rook • Published
-
Volta a la Communitat Valenciana: Biniam Girmay takes stage one sprint
It's another one in the bag for Intermarché-Circus-Wanty after Challenge Mallorca success
By James Shrubsall • Published
-
Eyeing the Olympic mountain bike race in Paris, Peter Sagan will retire from WorldTour racing at season's end
Finishing how he started, the former road world champion will race one last mountain bike-focused year in 2024
By Anne-Marije Rook • Published
-
Aleksandr Vlasov triumphs on steep gradients of stage three of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
Bora-Hansgrohe's new Russian signing conquers gravel section on queen stage
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Peter Sagan rescued stranded cycling tourist in Gran Canaria who thought group of pros were a 'bunch of kids'
Along with three other pros, Sagan helped fix a 63-year-old's puncture in Gran Canaria
By Ryan Dabbs • Published
-
Looking for more results and trying to figure out what kind of rider he is, Matt Walls on his second year at Bora-Hansgrohe
British sprinter says he hopes to head to Vuelta a España, his first grand tour, in August
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Sam Bennett aims to be 'master of chaos' in sprints as he returns to Bora-Hansgrohe
Irishman to target Milan-San Remo and then Tour de France as he looks to move on from troubled 2021
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Peter Sagan tests positive for Covid for a second time
Three-time world champion and his brother, Juraj, have had their plans disrupted by virus
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl release 2022 kit from new partners Castelli
The Italian clothing brand will make the Belgian team's kit until at least 2024
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Patrick Lefevere says Vuelta a España suits Evenepoel but doesn't want him given favourite status
The young Belgian abandoned the Giro d'Italia in 2021 after 18 stages
By Tim Bonville-Ginn • Published