The Jayco-Alula team held their team presentation in Adelaide on the eve of the Tour Down Under, highlighting their Australian roots and DNA and indicating their intentions to kick-off 2023 and the new three-year WorldTour cycling with early success and a haul of UCI ranking points in their home race.
Jayco-Alula were one of half a dozen teams caught up in the battle to avoid relegation from the WorldTour in 2022 and they do not want to be in a similar position going forward. Team owner Gerry Ryan has promised to fund the team for a further three years, with his Jayco camper van brand replacing his BikeExchange company as title sponsor for the team’s 12th season at the highest level.
Saudi Arabian tourist destination AlUla has stepped-up as a second title sponsor to share the financial burden, with Giant the important bike sponsor for a second year.
Gerry Ryan admitted to Cyclingnews in Adelaide that Jayco-AlUla does not have the budget to compete with the super teams and so win the Tour de France but they are ambitious as a new chapter for the team begins.
“We’ve perhaps got the strongest team we’ve had for three or four years,” Ryan said during the team presentation.
“A team is all about the people. If you surround yourself with the right people, who have the passion for what they do, the success will come. It’s always hard to win, so we should treasure every victory big or small in both the men’s and women’s team. They’re all important.”
The extra sponsorship has allowed the team to bolster its rider and staff for 2023, with long-time lead directeur sportif Matt White stepping into a Head of Performance role across both the men’s and women’s teams.
Michael Matthews and Simon Yates extended their contracts during 2022 and are again the natural leaders of the team in 2023.
Matthews confirmed his talents by winning a stage at the Tour de France and going close on several other occasions. He will again lead Jayco-AlUla in the Classics and sprints, while Yates will return to the Tour de France, perhaps taking aim at the overall classification and definitely targeting stages. Dylan Groenwegen remains as the team’s lead sprinter, virtually guaranteeing a haul of wins.
Jayco-AlUla changed a third of their roster for 2023 as they used their confirmed funding to rebuild for the future. Ten riders moved on and ten new riders came on board. Seven Australians left, including sprinter Kaden Groves, Damien Howson and Alex Edmondson, with 22-year-old sprinter Blake Quick, Chris Harper from Jumbo-Visma and Rudy Porter the new Australian arrivals. The team is more international but still speaks with an Aussie accent and still races with Aussie swagger.
Eddie Dunbar was a key signing from Ineos Grenadiers and will likely lead Jayco-AlUla at the Giro d’Italia and in some weeklong stage races. Italian national champion Filippo Zana also has considerable stage race potential, while veterans Alessandro De Marchi, Lukas Pöstlberger and Zdenek Stybar bring experience and quality to the roster.
Team manager Brent Copeland is cautiously optimistic for 2023 after the team’s success in 2022.
“We have a lot of goals for 2023. We had a successful 2022 with 22 wins and stage victories in all three Grand Tours. Not many teams achieve that these days,” Copeland pointed out.
“We have the roster to have a successful season again. A Classics win would be special and we’d be happy with other Grand Tour stage wins and a similar 22-win haul.”
Targeting a home win at the Tour Down Under
The Tour Down Under is always a major for Jayco-AlUla. It’s their ‘home’ WorldTour race and is important for Gerry Ryan, the sponsors and early-season team morale. A haul of UCI points would also immediately elevate the team in the new WorldTour points race. Everyone at the team is happy the Tour Down Under is back after an enforced two-year COVID-19 absence.
That’s why Matthews is back at the Tour Down Under after a decade away focusing on preparing for the spring Classics, and why Simon Yates arrived in Australia ten days before the race to prepare in the Adelaide Hills.
The team are carefully avoiding adding extra pressure on their shoulders but both are widely expected to be overall contenders.
Matthews could even win the prologue time trial on Tuesday, while Yates has the climbing ability to be there if the race turns selective in the Adelaide Hills and especially on the decisive final stage to Mount Lofty, that has over 3000-metres of climbing in just 112km of racing.
Their own weakness could be the expected high temperatures for the early stages but the heat will also create a more subdued, more controlled race for everyone.
"It's an honour to come back after a lot of years away and I mean, doing my thing overseas and then coming back and still getting some huge support on the side of the roads from Aussie fans," Matthews said after finishing third at the Australian national championships.
"This year we want to change things up a little bit after a lot of years of COVID-19 and not being able to travel and the events not being on. But now it's on full gas, so we're back here with all guns blazing."
An early-season peak could compromise Matthew’s form for the Classics and Yates’ chances in the spring stage races but going all in for the Tour Down Under is a calculated risk Jayco-Alula have decided to make.
They are wise to do so. Overall victory and perhaps even Matthews and Yates on the final podium would be equal or even bigger than winning a stage at the Tour de France and be the best possible way to start 2023.
Other storylines to follow in 2023
Dylan Groenwegen will again give Jayco-AlUla an important presence in sprint finishes. The Dutchman was a surprise signing for 2022 but won seven sprints, including stage three at the Tour de France and two stages at the Saudi Tour, that surely helped secure AlUla as a title sponsor for 2023.
Groenewegen’s win at the Tour was his first since Fabio Jakobsen’s terrible crash at the Tour de Pologne and marked his return to the highest level. There are fewer and fewer opportunities for the sprinters but Groenwegen is sure to take some of them in 2023.
Eddie Dunbar is a clever signing by Jayco-AlUla and shows they spent the funds they had wisely. The Irishman was looking for the opportunities his talents deserve but had few chances at Ineos Grenadiers.
His success at the Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali stage race was an indication of his ability and he is suited to other hilly WorldTour stage races. Dunbar has only ridden one Grand Tour and nobody is expecting him to challenge Remco Evenepoel at the Giro d’Italia but there is no reason why he can’t finish in the top five overall.
Every successful team has an experienced, reliable core and Jayco-AlUla were wise to sign Zdenek Stybar, Lukas Pöstlberger and Alessandro De Marchi for 2023. All three might be past their best, but like Australians Luke Durbridge and Michael Hepburn, they are still motivated, professional and ready to share their knowledge with their younger teammates.
Jayco-AlUla’s roster includes a host of interesting riders who can take opportunities when they arise, such as Italian national champion Filippo Zana, former Italian time trial champion Matteo Sobrero, the USA’s Lawson Craddock, Luka Mezgec, Tsgabu Grmay of Ethiopia and new Australian criterium national champion Kelland O'Brien.
