"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Heras leaving US Postal?............

from "cyclingnews.com"


Heras to leave US Postal?
Spanish newspaper Marca is reporting that 2003 Vuelta a Espana winner Roberto Heras is negotiating to end his contract with US Postal-Berry Floor in order to join Manolo Saiz' new Liberty Seguros team.

Liberty Seguros team manager Pablo Antón recently said that the squad hoped to complete its line-up with "the acquisition of a very important rider" before the end of the year. That rider was originally world championship silver medalist Alejandro Valverde, but attention has now turned to Heras as a rider who might bring with him a chance of victory in the Tour de France.

Heras is unlikely to be a cheap acquisition for Liberty Seguros. When Heras moved from Kelme to US Postal after winning the 2000 Vuelta, the buy-out penalty was rumoured to be on the order of US$750,000; terminating Heras' contract with US Postal is likely to be even more expensive, and Heras' salary won't be small either. However, the Liberty Seguros team is believed to have a budget agreement with the sponsor that is dependent on the personnel the team can attract. Directeur sportif Manolo Saiz therefore needs a high-profile rider such as Heras, and would be able to afford him.

Liberty Seguros is yet to announce other sponsors such as a bike supplier, though Cyclingnews sources say Saiz is in talks with several Italian bike manufacturers.

If Saiz does for Liberty Seguros what he did for ONCE in the Veulta then Heras would be wise to stay with USPS. If he does go, best of luck. And, hopefully, it will inspire Lance to even greater heights.

They are promising him leadership role @ the TdF

They are promising him leadership role @ the TdF

I'd hope. Anything else would be just stupid.

I think T-Mobile might be willing to come up with the buyout to make this happen. ;)

Best step for Heras to make.
He has great abilities and could win the Tour or at least the Giro more than once. So why should he stay behind Armstrong ?
If I were him, I would never have gone to USPS.
Just for the money he sold some of his potential and potentialities of his future.

More on Heras (www.eurosport.com/home/pages/V3/LO/home_LngO.shtml)

This is interesting...the parent of the sponsor is a United States company. Postal stands to make a ton off the buyout which will put them right on the market to pick off another Beltran type rider. LS has, other than Igor, who else? I scanned the rider transfer/signing page on cyclingnews and found little. The money they spend on Heras' salary and the buyout would be, I would think, a large portion of their budget.

The very low key Heras working with the borderline out of control Saiz? Interesting match.

Roberto is very talented, evidenced by his two GC wins in the Vuelta. But the genius of Bryuneel's tactics did a lot to get Heras home first last September. Saiz ain't that smart.

If it does happen (and the history suggests it will) I
think it will be a VERY interesting Tour this year.
GC contenders Heras, Ullrich, Armstrong, maybe
Beloki (don't know if his team will be strong enough) and
Hamilton will make things exciting to say the least.
Personally I think its a good move for Heras, although I
don't want to see him go.

If it does happen (and the history suggests it will) I
think it will be a VERY interesting Tour this year.
GC contenders Heras, Ullrich, Armstrong, maybe
Beloki (don't know if his team will be strong enough) and
Hamilton will make things exciting to say the least.

It looks like Heras is going to make the move for sure:

U.S. Postal team director Johan Bruyneel told Spanish sports daily Marca that Heras, who still has a year left on his contract, had begun moves to negotiate his departure from the American outfit.

"A few days ago his lawyer told us that he wanted to leave the team," said Bruyneel. "Apparently he has received an offer of a three-year contract to lead another team.
"We aren't happy with the situation, but if Roberto wants to leave there is nothing we can do to stop him."

Heras refused to comment.

"I can neither deny nor confirm the reports," he told Marca. "I don't want to talk about it."

I agree that this will make next year's Tour VERY interesting. I also agree that this is a good move for Roberto, but perhaps not for Postal. Although, Postal will have some extra cash to procure another great rider or two.

I can't wait to see next years shoot-out in the mountains!!!

I'd like to see Heras on the TDF podium in 2004.

I'd like it even better if it were Heras, then Jan in second, then Beloki in third, then Lance just missing a podium spot. The tour has been too predictable for too long, it is time for a change of guards.

I've always felt Heras has the ability to spank Lance in the mountains anyway, hell, he pulls him along for 75 percent of the climbs anyway.

So why should he stay behind Armstrong ?
money. he is very well paid at usps, and has had a couple of years of guaranteed big purses. as domestique #1 at usps, he has earned more than most team leaders, and he's been given the opportunity and support [at least this year] to win the vuelta.

i think a more telling question might be "why leave?" does he perhaps believe that the days of the big tour purses are over for usps?

Lance will gain huge chunks of time on Roberto in the time trials. I think that is without question (Other than the L'Alpe d'Huez TT). Can Roberto get it back in the mountains?

i think a more telling question might be "why leave?" does he perhaps believe that the days of the big tour purses are over for usps?

Interesting question, I never thought of it in that light.
If he stays and Lance retires after next year I see Heras as #1 guy
and having big purses.
However, If Lance hangs on (and I don't doubt that he will) I can
see the above scenario being played out over a few years.

Marty

Though I don't see Heras as a TDF winner, if he stays on a USPS Lance team he will never even have a chance to win it all.

It is official! Heras has left USPS! um holy crap, '04 TdF heating up!

http://www.usps-berryfloor.com/news.aspx?lang=en&co=USA&ID=244

HOLY CRAP IS RIGHT!!! :eek:

Personally, I think the two riders from Euskaltel-Euskadi (Zubeldia & Mayo) are more of a threat to Lance than Heras will be. Both of them can keep up and attack Lance, which Heras can do, but they can also do pretty good in a time trial, as we saw this year.

Heras will never be an all arounder. His only threat is the mountains... and even there, it's only the super steep mountains where he blows the field away.

Also let's not forget, Heras is prone to be either coming off injuries, or sick during the TdF and is usually not at his best.

I can see Heras taking a mountain stage, but I doubt he gains more than a minute on Lance, if that. If anything, all Lance has to do is hang with him as long as possible while Heras blows the rest of the field into nothing.

In addition, it's clear that Heras won't have the team support that Lance has. So you can definitely guarantee he'll lose big time on the TTT... possible the whole 1'30" or whatever the max time you can lose next year.

Unless Heras suddenly becomes a great TT'er, I don't think he's that great of a threat to Lance. If anything, he's risking pissing Lance off which isn't a good thing.

Heras showed during the Vuelta that he's improved his time trialing. What I wonder is why such a talented rider would choose to ride for a team with Saiz as a director.

Heras showed during the Vuelta that he's improved his time trialing. What I wonder is why such a talented rider would choose to ride for a team with Saiz as a director.

I agree with both of your points, Laggard. I didn't think that Heras would ever be a good TT rider - his pure climbing attributes seemed to always get in the way. However, he has shown MUCH improvement over the past year, and now has to be considered a podium condender for the 2004 TdF. Now, the TT @ L'Alpe d'Huez could be even MORE interesting!

I've never been a fan of Saiz - and I haven't changed my mind after this year's display (and subsequent ejection) @ the Vuelta. I'm a big fan of Roberto, and if he has a good team, he will be a serious threat next year.

I can't wait until July!!!!! :D

i dunno marty... usps [the government department] is under increasingly heated fire for sponsoring the team. when armstrong retires, you can be pretty sure that the team will have to find itself a good sell-able american, or at least anglo, leader. usps [the team] could never have a spanish leader. heras knows that... and isn't the sponsorship up after next year?

Heras' departure may be a good thing for USPS. Of course, Roberto is a very strong rider, but his efforts in the service of another team will completely change the race dynamics. Hamilton and Ulrich now have to watch another contender, and additional tactical difficulties may play in the hands of the Posties.

Cheers

While I think Lance is still the rider to beat in the TDF, this move makes T-Mobile the Team to beat. With so many other riders competing against LA, T-Mobile's job is getting easier. I will be very surprised if USPS can find another climber the caliber of Heras this late.

Maybe they can coax Pantani out of retirement? :p

Also, being Heras' last year with USPS, they can get some big bucks for his last year buy-out. That will help them, as well. Next year's TdF looks like it will be anything but boring.

ohh how the competition for the TDF GC has changed in two years eh? Armstrong, Heras, Ullrich, Beloki, Hamilton, Basso, Mayo, Zubeldia...

If Liberty's team develops well, I wonder who could challenge Heras in the Vuelta? Like others have mentioned, I'm skeptical about the benefit of Heras having Saiz as director.

oops double posty

Remember something....

Lance won the Tour last year with diarrhea, road rash, tendonitis, saddle sores, dehydration, a cyclocross/mountain bike adventure, a broken bike, and mistakes.

Roberto, while marshaling on to finish, was on many climbs not effective due to his own health problems. Unlike past Tours, like '02 which was Heras' best IMO, he was not able to help like he had in the past. The point is that this was Lance's worst Tour by far, and Roberto really could not help.

Postal and Lance still won.

How many millions of dollars in team transfers have been spent since the end of the '99 Tour to beat Postal and Lance? Many, I'll wager.

Five and counting. One hundred and eighty nine riders with one mission. To somehow beat Lance.

As a Postal and Roberto fan, I wish him the best. But I do not think it will have that much influence on the race outcome.

Last, Saiz gets up in the morning wishing he had Bruyneel's tactical genius. Outside of sheer talent, a major part of Postal's success is the trust that exists between the riders and the director. You can't buy that.

Maybe they can coax Pantani out of retirement? :p

Good idea! With his ears to shelter the team they will not need to carry rain jackets in foul weather!

I am happy to see this move by Heras. He needs to be taking the opportunity to lead. Lance will have to do more of his own work next season when he loses the 2004 tour. I'd hate to see the efforts of Heras wasted on someone who is NOT going to win again anyway.

Mateo,

Funny that no one picked up on this aspect but then
I'm not really surprized.
I think that USPS will ease themselves out and we'll see
more Euro sponsors (ala Berry Floor) and then maybe a non American can take lead position. I also think once lance retires that most US interest will wane, sad but
true. Not sure when the sponsorship ends, I don't see any saleable american stepping up to the plate, at least
not at the level that Lance is (or was). Anyhow don't want to hijack the thread too much.
I don't see Beloki or Heras as that much of a threat this
year. Liberty sequoia is too new a team (although bianchi
did ok last year), and Brioche just doesn't have the riders
to support Beloki. I see them as real contenders in 2005.
but then thats just my .02 worth, in any event its going to be a very different TdF this year.
Marty

thething is, marty, that i think you'd have to wonder why heras would give up a guaranteed goldmine like armstrong and usps for the risk of a new team. i'm sure usps would pay him [in salary] what liberty seguros will pay him, so the question is how guaranteed is that guaranteed goldmine of tour prize money?

i wonder if heras knows something about armstrong and usps that we don't know?

as for who might step up to leadership in usps after armstrong retires... i think there is a possibility [however small] that a us sponsor would back a team with a non-american leader as long as he was an anglo... like an aussie... like michael rogers...

When in Indy a month and a half ago, Lance said that he has no current plans to retire at the end of '04, despite what folks write.

Why not Tyler Hamilton? What's he got, a new two year deal with Phonak? If that team ends up not doing well, buy out his contract.

Remember, Postal existed for two years before Lance signed with them. Had Cofidis not backed out of their deal with him, he may not have ever ridden with Postal. Who knows?

thething is, marty, that i think you'd have to wonder why heras would give up a guaranteed goldmine like armstrong and usps for the risk of a new team. i'm sure usps would pay him [in salary] what liberty seguros will pay him, so the question is how guaranteed is that guaranteed goldmine of tour prize money?...

I think most riders are willing to give up a goldmine for the chance to win the Tour. Hell, I think most would ride for free if they had a chance.

Quote:
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Originally Posted by velocipedio
thething is, marty, that i think you'd have to wonder why heras would give up a guaranteed goldmine like armstrong and usps for the risk of a new team. i'm sure usps would pay him [in salary] what liberty seguros will pay him, so the question is how guaranteed is that guaranteed goldmine of tour prize money?...
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I think most riders are willing to give up a goldmine for the chance to win the Tour. Hell, I think most would ride for free if they had a chance.

The tour prize money isn't a goldmine (approx a half million divided 8 ways?) relative to his salary (1.3-1.5 mil euros) so I don't think Roberto's going to miss it that much.

USPS's contract ends in 2004 so the team will have to find another name sponsor, which more than likely will be a foreign company and probably not a Spanish one at that. Roberto's contract also ends in 2004 so he'll be looking for another contract also and since I don't see the market picking up salarywise, I don't see any salary upside in Roberto waiting till next year to settle things.

So, with Liberty Seguros giving him a three year contract at the same or more amount of money as USPS, plus it's a Spanish team and he'll be the top GC man, I can see how Roberto thought it was a good deal.

I'm looking forward to a great season next year.

If he stays and Lance retires after next year I see Heras as #1 guy and having big purses.


I think it is a good move for him. If Lance retires I think USPS would make a play for Tyler so that they could have an American leading the team which is important to their US sponsors and US cycling in general.

USPS is all ready under a lot of pressure for funding such an 'unpopular' sport as cycling. When LA retires the USPS team will be gone. In fact, my guess is that regardless of next year's results and LA's decision it will be the last year for the USPS team.

Procycling is reporting that USPS ha acquired the services of Portugese rider Jose Azevedo to fill the gap Left by Heras' departure to Liberty.

www.procycling.com/news_main.asp?newsId=4803

Here is a record of his career. Note the Time Trial victories and the Stage victories. Should be a good fit.

www.trap-friis.dk/cykling/portugal.Azevedo.htm

Sorry-this was already posted in the thread "That was quick" . Dbl Post.

As for the reason for Robero leaving, cyclists are heros in Spain, except for Roberto Heras despite his success in the Veulta. He is not a hero because people thought he should be leading his own team, not riding for Lance. Riding for Lance was kind of like taking the easy way out, instead of taking the risk of leading his own team and possibly failing he rode for Lance, not very heroic. I had no problem with it, we are all different, some want to be leaders, some want to be helpers. But he could not be the hero doing that.

Then this Tour route comes along, with a time trial on Alpe d'Huez, and Roberto likes his chances of beating Lance and everybody else on that stage, which has a big possiblity of being the deciding stage of the Tour. Why wait until 2005 when he will be a year older, and he has the perfect opportunity now?

I like Roberto's decesion. I think it will be best for him, and it will be exciting to see him racing against Lance and the rest of the pelaton.