Groups have a brand new concern in terms of gaining UCI factors: a brand new rule that limits wildcard invites that Grand Excursions such because the Tour de France can lengthen to the highest 50 groups on the UCI World Rankings.
This season was the first yr that groups have been relegated from the WorldTour for dropping exterior the highest 18 within the three-year Staff Rankings. Lotto-Dstny and Israel-Premier Tech dropped all the way down to ProTeam standing involuntarily, whereas Alpecin-Deceuninck and Arkéa-Samsic have been elevated to the WorldTour.
In 2024, Grand Tour organisers can solely choose from the highest 50 groups, and in 2025 the vary shrinks to the highest 40, lastly selecting the highest 30 groups in 2026.
The Grand Excursions are required to ask all WorldTour groups and the 2 high ProTeams of the earlier yr’s World Rating. These groups have been Lotto-Dstny and TotalEnergies, however Israel-Premier Tech have been prolonged wildcard invites to all three Grand Excursions. UCI guidelines don’t require Grand Tour organisers to ask demoted groups, however different WorldTour stage races are obliged to incorporate these groups within the yr following their demotion.
The brand new rule will cease races just like the Vuelta a España from favouring low-ranked home groups. Burgos-BH have been 62nd within the 2022 rankings and earned a wildcard forward of different higher-ranked groups like Uno-X. Caja Rural-Seguros-RGA have been thirty second and in addition received an invite to the Spanish Grand Tour.
A brand new rule additionally covers groups who’ve newly gained a ProTeam licence. The rating of latest groups shall be calculated on the factors scored by one of the best 20 riders. That is in distinction to the purpose calculations for current groups whose factors are calculated on riders who have been on the workforce within the earlier season. Riders factors don’t switch together with them to new groups.
The foundations don’t seem to account for double counting of a rider who would possibly switch from an current WorldTeam or ProTeam to a brand new ProTeam.
With these new guidelines, each level will depend not only for groups aiming for the WorldTour within the subsequent three-year cycle however for any workforce with Grand Tour ambitions.
