Mark Cavendish has finally agreed the terms of his contract with QuickStep-Alpha Vinyl for next year, with team boss Patrick Lefevere saying the deal was all in place and all that remained was the British rider's signature.
Cavendish has been unable to meet Lefevere and sign the deal yet as he is still at home in the UK recovering from broken ribs and a punctured lung, which he sustained at the Ghent Six Day.
"Mark wanted the extension on his fairytale and I didn't want to take that away from him," Lefevere told the media at a team sponsor event in Belgium on Thursday.
“It’s a done deal. He will stay with us for another year. Only the signature is missing but that will happen soon. Everybody knows when managers and lawyers come into play it gets more difficult.
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"It took a long time but it didn't make me impatient, I knew it would happen. But at some point you hand it over and when the contract is done, you let the people get on with it."
He added while Cavendish was unable to fly at present due to his injuries, he would travel by car to Spain in the next fortnight for a team camp, where all the riders will be photographed as part of the squad's promotions for next year.
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“The riders have a programme of activity from 8am to 8pm with obligations, exercises and tests. During the first few days they will barely ride on their bikes but we want him to be there."
Cavendish, a 34-time Tour de France stage winner and former world champion, almost drifted out of the sport at the end of the 2020 season after spending years in the wilderness as he struggled with recovering from the Epstein-Barr virus.
Lefevere gave him a one-year deal for 2021, though Cavendish was not paid by the team. He regained his form and won four stages of the Tour of Turkey in April.
When Sam Bennett was not able to ride the Tour de France for Deceuninck-QuickStep this year due to injury, Cavendish was called up as the team's sprinter for the race. He won four stages and the green jersey.
His wish was always to stay with the team for one final season in 2022. However, when he asked to be given a role on the management side after he retired the contract talks stalled.
It was unclear if a post-retirement role in the team is part of the contract terms Cavendish has just agreed with Lefevere, who made not reference to that aspect of the deal.
