Ineos Grenadiers have confirmed that the team will have a development squad partner for 2025, opening up a new pathway to the WorldTour.
As of next year the British giants will partner with German UCI Continental team Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank in order to provide a “finishing school” for young riders. It is the first time Ineos has had an official development partner, something other big teams like Visma-Lease a Bike, UAE Team Emirates, Lidl-Trek and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe already have, with development Continental teams.
According to Ineos, the new partnership will come in addition to the team’s current internal "Ascent" development setup which has already been utilised in the development of the likes of Josh Tarling, Michael Leonard and young American pro AJ August.
The team said that the Ascent programme will be expanded next season with the partnership with Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank becoming an important part in developing and preparing young riders for competition at professional cycling’s top level.
“Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank provides an outstanding competitive environment which will give our youngest riders valuable racing experience,” Ineos performance director Dr Scott Drawer said of the new partnership. “Key riders will be selected and placed with the Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank team while still being coached and supported by Ineos Grenadiers staff.
“We see this as a ‘finishing school’ for young talent before their transition to the WorldTour, akin to that of a loan club in professional football. The management and staff at Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank have really impressed us and we trust that this is going to be a fruitful and key partnership for the future.”
Ineos Grenadiers have come off the back of their worst-ever season in the team’s history, with just 14 wins. Following that, they have gone through an overhaul during the current off-season in order to aim to turn the tide for 2025. This has included the departure of the team’s previous director of racing Steve Cummings, while several new additions to the team’s staffing infrastructure have also been introduced.
The team has brought on board a handful of new riders ahead of the new season which has included a blend of youth and experience. Bob Jungels and Lucas Hamilton will join the team from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and Jayco-AIUla respectively. Young talent will also come on board in the form of Sam Watson from Groupama FDJ and Axel Laurance from Alpecin-Deceuninck.
A press release from Ineos did not make the length of the deal with Lotto Kern-Haus PSD Bank clear, only mentioning the 2025 season. It's also unclear which riders will be on the squad for next season.
The owner of the German team, Florian Monreal, said the new relationship with Ineos was a testament to the hard work and consistency which the team has displayed in producing young talent that has gone on to the WorldTour in recent years.
“Thanks to our network and various collaborations, we always have very good talent in the team and the racing calendar is at an absolutely top level,” he said. “Working with young, motivated riders in the most important U23 races is a lot of fun and it's always great to see these talents then move on to the WorldTour.”
Current Ineos pro Kim Heiduk was previously part of the German squad along with Max Walscheid (Jayco-AIUla) and Jonas Rutsch (EF Education-EasyPost).
