Having enjoyed a very strong debut season in 2019, Irish Continental level team EvoPro Racing is working away at securing more investment for next season.
Team principal Morgan Fox told stickybottle that raising
more funding was a work in progress but he was confident it would happen.
Fox and his business partner away from cycling PJ Nolan,
former president of Cycling Ireland, essentially put together a financial
package last year to ensure the team could race in 2019.
But looking forward, Fox is mindful that maintaining the
team over the long term, and building it up, will require more outside
investment. And that must come from sponsors.
With many teams having ceased in recent years – Aqua Blue
Sport and An Post-Chainreaction among them – Fox doesn’t shy away from a
straight answer when asked if EvoPro Racing will be around next year.
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“Yes, as long as we can pull in some more cash sponsors. I’m quite confident but at the same time until it’s signed off it’s nothing,” he says.
A former national road race champion and ex-pro himself,
Fox said he was very pleased with EvoPro Racing’s maiden season.
And he is very hopeful the results the squad has achieved
will help secure sponsor investment; something that would have been almost
impossible 12 months ago before the team had ridden a race.
EvoPro Racing began its 2019 campaign in New Zealand way
back in early January, taking 1st and 3rd in the Gravel and Tar Classic (1.2) via
Luke Mudgway and Cyrus Monk.
Aaron Gate then took a stage in the New Zealand Cycle
Classic (2.2) and won the race overall.
Gate and Wouter Wippert then took three stages between them
in Belgrade Banjaluka (2.1); a race Gate only lost overall after a puncture on
the final stage having held the race lead all the way.
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Harry Sweeny then claimed a stage of Rhône-Alpes Isère
Tour (2.2) in France before Wouter Wippert claimed a stage in the Tour of
Hungary (2.1).
Aside from the wins, the team also took a whole host of podium placings – 25 in all – and a very large number top 10s.
Shane Archbold started the season with the team and
returned to WorldTour level with Bora-hansgrohe midway through the year; a great
move for him and a feather in the cap of EvoPro Racing.
Furthermore, another of its riders – Harry Sweeny – has
secured a place on the Lotto-Soudal U23 team for next year. That comes with a
path to the WorldTour squad midseason all going well; another positive sign for
EvoPro Racing.
Fox and Nolan put together a very strong squad for this
season despite the team starting from scratch this time last year. And Fox said
there is demand for places on the team next year.
“My in-box is full of very, very good
riders looking for a place with EvoPro, mainly because we had the best program of
any Continental level team in the world in 2019,” he said.
“We expect to keep those invites based
on our performances,” Fox continued, before adding in pragmatic terms that the
basic need to secure financing was required to build on the progress to date.
“We’re confident of securing the
necessary funds to continue the team into the future and are very hopeful of a
long term deal to allow the team to reach great heights in the years to come.
“But it’s not easy. We are very much open to talking with any interested parties. I think this team is a great
opportunity for Irish guys to aim for; much like the Kelly team was,” he said
in reference to Sean Kelly’s An Post-Chainreaction.
But Fox added that not having Rás
Tailteann this year, where his team would have been able to showcase itself to
potential Irish sponsors, was a blow.
“The loss of the Ràs has been a stumbling
block,” he said. “Without our own national tour to showcase the team we rely on
those results in foreign countries finding their way back to the Irish press.
“It
would be great to see its return and for us to be highly competitive in it as an
Irish team.”
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