Lotto talks to Axel Merckx after John Lilango’s departure, Mark Sergent attacks: ‘Make a hole first, then leave the sinking ship’ | Cycling

Will Axel Merckx soon be given ultimate sporting responsibility in Lotto? It seems that this is what you’re after. Merckx fits the profile the team is looking for: He’s bilingual, popular in both the north and south of the country and he knows the course. Merckx, who has lived in Belgium again since his divorce, has been the manager of the Hagens Bermann Axion American Under-23 team for years. This experience is a great asset, as Lotto will continue to focus strongly on young talent in the years to come.

Negotiations are ongoing and appear to be moving in the right direction. It’s not entirely clear what the final title will be for Merckx. Will he be a general manager, like Lilange, or will he just focus on sports? For commercial and financial matters, he can in any case refer to Yana Seal, chief business officer of the team. She will lead the team alongside Lilango for the next three months “to make the transition go smoother”. A temporary solution, as Seal has no intention of becoming CEO after that. “I don’t know enough about the sport for that,” she said internally.

The name of Philip Gilbert (40) was also circulated yesterday. He’s in his final weeks as a rider and has a number of qualities on par with Merckx, but Gilbert said he “wasn’t asked for the team manager position”.

Regardless of who the new CEO will be, it’s clear that a lot will change at Lotto-Dstny, where the team will be called up next year. John Lilango has been with the team for four years and says his “mission accomplished”, but it reminds us of how George “is 99 percent my business” There’s still a yard behind, said Likens goodbye to the Red Devils at the time. Lelangue’s advantage is that he allowed a lot of youngsters to flow through him, but that was forced: the team never had the necessary clout. Today, landing from the WorldTour is actually inevitable. Lotto will need wildcards for the next three years in order to be allowed to ride the biggest races. Not a nice ending. Lelangue says he made the decision himself not to renew his expired contract. The team adheres to the divorce by “mutual agreement”. Anyway, the story is over.

It’s a break-in at Lotto Soudal (bis): Lilanji’s right hand resigns