On the move: Dan Martin is about to leave Garmin-Cannondale and begin a new chapter in his cycling career. The Irishman has been a mainstay of his current team ever since he joined the pro ranks in 2008 but has decided on a change of direction.
Dan Martin is on the verge of signing for Etixx-Quick Step and his move there will bring to end an eight-year association with Garmin.
It’s a brave move by the 29 year-old Irishman and one that has divided opinion on whether it’s the right thing to do or not.
Here are three reasons why we think he's doing the right thing...and three more why we think he’s making a mistake...
Pro #1 – A new team brings a new challenge and fresh impetus
Dan Martin was one of the original Garmin riders when the team was first inaugurated in 2008.
Advertisement
In the line-up then were some of the sport’s biggest names and Martin has always spoken about those days as like being part of a family.
Riders like David Millar, Christain Vande Velde and David Zabriskie helped make Martin the rider he is today but are no longer around.
The current Garmin Cannondale squad has no such array of stars and there’s not as much of a family atmosphere, so getting out now when his contract is up is a wise choice.
Con #1 – He had a well-established role in Garmin Cannondale
Martin is one of Garmin-Cannondale’s best-paid and most revered riders and commands respect in every race.
In the Ardennes Classics he's been their protected rider while in the Tour, Giro and the Vuelta in recent years he’s had the full support of the squad.
Establishing yourself in a team takes time but such has been Martin’s loyalty and ability to pull out results that his role in the team was never questioned.
He now goes through the process of getting to know the riders in the Etixx-QuickStep team, learning their ways and the team’s ways.
In fact, it will be hard to even imagine Dan Martin riding for another team such has been his loyalty to Garmin.
Pro #2 – There’s a readymade job for him where he’s going
The departure of Michel Kwiatkowski to Team Sky leaves a gap in the Etixx-QuickStep team.
Aside from 23 year-old Julian Alaphilippe and Gianluca Brambilla, the team don’t have a man in Martin’s league who can win an Ardennes Classic, or not a very obvious one anyway.
Martin has won Liége-Bastogne-Liége once and been close to winning Fléche Wallone a few times, amongst other races.
A new environment could be just what will get him over the line first in many of the races he’s been oh so close to.
Con #2 – The merger with Cannondale might actually come good yet…
In short, the merger was a disaster this year and the team languish second last in the latest World Tour standings.
Their best result has been a stage win in the Giro through Italian Davide Formolo and Martin deserves to be in a team far better than that. (Etixx-Quick Step are fourth in the standings).
Having said that, it was always going to be difficult to merge two teams in the way it was done.
Related News
Several riders from both teams were left out of contract at the end of last year and that can’t have been an easy environment to step into.
But with a year down and kinks ironed out the team might actually come back a more united, stronger force next year.
Martin won’t be around to find out, however.
Pro #3 – Respect?
It goes without saying that Martin enjoyed the best year of his career in 2013 when he won the Volta A Catalunya as well as the queen stage, a stage of the Tour, Liége-Bastogne-Liége, finished second overall at the Tour of Beijing and fourth in the Tour Lombardy.
Last year he enjoyed another superb year despite breaking his collar bone at the Giro and missing a good chunk of the year.
But this year it just hasn’t happened for him, with a lot of that down to bad luck, to be fair.
He’s went close to some brilliant results a few times, mind, but failed to land a big one...yet.
The team have to come in for scrutiny here.
Reason one, on stage three of the Volta A Catalunya he didn’t get the help from teammate Andrew Talansky that would have all but guaranteed him the stage win.
They had two men in the top seven coming to the line in Girona and outnumbered all the others in the move.
If Martin was plan A, B and C, why didn't the American chase Pozzovivo when he attacked in the final?
Martin finished third while Talansky was seventh in what was an unmitigated disaster.
Secondly, Martin was infuriated during the Criterium du Dauphiné when he was left stranded after puncturing on the key penultimate stage.
He had incredible form that week but needed the sufficient back-up from behind to reciprocate his efforts.
Thirdly, there was pressure on him to ride the Tour of Romandie, despite having several broken ribs from a crash at Liége-Bastogne-Liége.
He completed the race but one has to question the wisdom of having him do that race in a clearly unfit state.
Con #3 - Garmin have always enjoyed a good reputation (Really!)
Tom Danielson’s recent positive test might put a rather big hold in this one but Garmin-Cannondale pride themselves on being ‘the clean team’.
And to give Martin his dues, a lot of that is down to him.
The team is known for its own internal testing program (and it has been modified since they went to the World Tour in 2008), have emphasized transparency since their inauguration and have earned legions of loyal followers.
They use cutting edge technology and equipment and are always at the forefront of cycling’s innovations so leaving them and going elsewhere is definitely a risk.
Topics
