It’s been talked about for some time, but now Michael Mørkøv has also confirmed: the 38-year-old Dane will not be racing for Soudal QuickStep next year. However, the talented sprint lead-out man is currently only giving hints about where his future might be.
During the last Tour de France, Mørkøv, who has been riding for the Belgian team since 2018, was dedicated to Soudal Quickstep’s sprint train, which ultimately cost him the last position in the General Classification of the race.
But Soudal Quick-Step has been going through a transformation in recent years. The team has always been known for its successes in classics and sprinting, but in recent years, with Remco Evenepoel as a protagonist, they have increasingly focused on the overall classification in grand tours.
Merger facilitates Mørkøv’s departure
And there’s also the big news that Jumbo-Visma and Soudal-Quick-Step are working on a merger behind the scenes. Mørkøv no longer needs to worry about that. “I know which team I will race for next year, and it won’t be Soudal-Quick Step,” the confident cyclist confirmed to the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet.
Astana on the horizon?
According to the Italian sports newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, the experienced Dane is heading to the Astana Qazaqstan Team. Mørkøv is keeping things discreet for now, but it seems that the mystery will be solved soon. “Astana? It’s an option, a good option,” is his revealing response.