Michael Mørkøv, who developed into the best lead-out rider in the world at Soudal-QuickStep, has given a very strong indication he is on the way out of the team after six seasons. Though he joined the squad in what should have been the twilight of his career, he has enjoyed his most successful period with the Belgian team.
He has led out Elia Viviani, Mark Cavendish, Fabio Jakobsen and Ireland's Sam Bennett during those years and has been widely recognised as the best in the business.
However, he says he now has other offers - including one he describes as very interesting - and as he is out of contract at the end of this season, he believes he will likely move on. Though he is now aged 38 years, he still believes he has more to give at the top level of the sport for some years to come.
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"It obviously seems to me that Soudal-QuickStep is changing a lot as a team," he said. "Over the years it has been a formation in which a lot has been focused on sprints and one-day classics.
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"But with Remco Evenepoel in the squad and the talent he has, it's only natural that you want to build the team around him. So if they want to reduce the importance of bunch sprints in the team economy, I'm no longer sure this is the right place for me."
While Jakobsen and Mørkøv both now look like they are leaving Patrick Lefevere's team, they are still selected for the Tour de France and Mørkøv says that race will be very important for him, especially as he is now actively speaking to other teams for next year and beyond, he told Danish outlet EkstraBladet.
"I don't have a contract for next season yet, so the 2023 Tour will be very important for my future. I think I still have a few years of good performance in my legs. I'm negotiating with Patrick Lefevere, but also to some other teams. Which? I won't say it, but I can confirm that Uno-X is a very interesting option."
If he went to Uno-X, the Danish-Norwegian team that boasts Alexander Kristoff among its ranks this year, Mørkøv would join up with his brother, Jasper, who has working as a directeur with the team.
