Belgian team confirms Grand Tour leader before transfer window opens on August 1
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Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors) celebrates his first WorldTour win(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors)
Bob Jungels (Quick-Step Floors)(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Bob Jungels continued in the maglia rosa(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Quick-Step Floors boss Patrick Lefevere with his winning squad(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
A day before the opening of the UCI transfer window, Bob Jungels has confirmed he will stay with the Quick-Step Floors team for a further three seasons as he continues to develop as a Grand Tour and stage race rider.
The 24-year-old Luxembourg national road race champion finished eighth in the Giro d’Italia and won the best young rider's white jersey for the second season. He also wore the race leader's pink jersey for five days, proving he is one of the most promising rouleur Grand Tour riders in the peloton.
Quick-Step Floors revealed the news as Jungels prepared for stage 3 of the Tour de Pologne. Jungels is expected to be one of the Belgian's team's leader for the upcoming Vuelta a Espana.
The three-year contract is yet another indication of the team's long-term future has been finalised. During the Tour de France team manager Patrick Lefevere hinted that he had secured backing for the 2018 season and beyond. It seems his current sponsors will remain on board rather new sponsors coming in.
Philippe Gilbert, Julian Alaphilippe, Fernando Gaviria and Jungels are expected to form the cornerstones of the team for 2018. Marcel Kittel has been linked to the Katusha-Alpecin team after his five stage victories at the Tour de France, while Dan Martin is also considering several options after his sixth place overall. Matteo Trentin is expected to join Orica-Scott for 2018, while hard-working domestique Julian Vermote is also expected to move to Dimension Data to help Mark Cavendish.
Three more years
Jungels' new contract means he will stay with Quick-Step Floors until the end of 2020.
"I am really happy with where I am, with the whole team, the staff and the management, so it was never a question for me if I wanted to stay or not," Jungels said in the official announcement from the team before posting a second video message on the team's social media.
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"I feel I have a lot of support and trust from the entire team and I am both happy and proud to continue with this great outfit for the next three years. I'm heading towards a really interesting time in my career and it's very important to rely on a strong team for the Grand Tours, and this is what I have here at Quick-Step Floors."
"I like to see my career as a project. Two years ago I was a bit uncertain if I could compete for the GC in a Grand Tour, but I got that confirmation while riding for Quick-Step Floors and I am grateful for that. Next year, I'm not going to focus only on Grand Tours. I know I can do well also in one-day races and week-long stage races, so I'll try to be there when it will matter in Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Paris-Nice, Tirreno-Adriatico or the Tour de Suisse, which are all races that suit me well."
