Pascal Ackermann confirms move to UAE Team Emirates for 2022
German sprints quits Bora-Hansgrohe to replace Alexander Kristoff
UAE Team Emirates have announced the signing of Pascal Ackermann as they continue to bolster their roster for 2022 and expand their ambitions beyond winning the Tour de France with Tadej Pogacar.
The German sprinter and Classics rider joins UAE Team Emirates after five seasons with Bora-Hansgrohe. He emerged via the German team despite the presence of Peter Sagan but recently fell out with team management after being left out of the Tour de France line-up.
Ackermann has agreed a two-year deal with UAE Team Emirates and will join fellow new signing and Grand Tour rider João Almeidia, replacing Alexander Kristoff, who has already confirmed he will ride for Intermarche-Wanty.
“I am absolutely thrilled to wear the UAE jersey next year,” Ackerman said when UAE Team Emirates announced his arrival in 2022.
“This step will be a special one in my still young career. The team I will be part of is something unique in cycling. I would like to thank everyone who made this step possible and gave me the confidence to achieve common future goals.”
“Success is always teamwork, and so I would like to say already today that I will take each and every one of the team on a hopefully unique journey to many successes. At the same time, I have always been a team player and will certainly also put myself in a role to work hard for the others when situations require. Also I am convinced that, with the help of my teammates, staff and management, I will be able to develop as a rider in a way that will reveal new facets of myself. I’m ready to start this new journey.”
UAE team manager Mauro Gianetti has already secured young talents Finn Fisher-Black of New Zealand and Spain’s next great thing Juan Ayuso. Ackermann is part of the renewal of the team’s roster.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
“We are building a group of riders who can work well together in a good environment both on and off the bike and we believe a rider like Pascal can enrich the team also with his human qualities which is very important,” the experienced Swiss manager said.
“Pascal is a hugely talented rider and we are delighted to have him join our squad.
“We know he is capable of great things and we look forward to working towards many successes together with him in our team.”
Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.