Garmin-Cervelo

while disappointed that two very good competitive squads had to merge, i have to think this union has made them collectively stronger. cervelo's tech savvy and garmin's emphasis on focused training should stand them well over the course of the coming season. thor should be a much more successful rider this season with this team's backing, maybe even bringing back some memories of his years with c a, barring injury of course. should be another good showing of the arc en ciel on the road.

Maybe too many chiefs not enough Indians in their sprinting section.
While Roubaix leader (and De Ronde, to certain point) won't be in question, every other race could disturb their team cohesion. Especially the Tour.
Also, their merging blurred their identity, in my view. It certainly isn't Cervelo, but nether it's Garmin. Its title name is Garmin, but they'll be recognized by Cervelo riders, I think. Strange merging.
Merging between teams with not so similar qualities would be more natural and effective.

It's just a shame that there is one less team in the world. I think Garmin was far more evolved as a team than Cervélo and I imagine it was more internal problems at Cervélo that led to this. Also, there was a lot of money behind Cervélo, so I can't see Garmin having said no.

Cervélo also lost it's leader and Garmin is pretty leaderless. Sprint trains make for boring cycling. A shame really. A shame also is the demise of Saxo Bank. Having seen Riis get flicked made me think what a thankless bunch they were. I think there are bigger things at play however: Because Geox getting snubbed was weird, while before the UCI tolerated those weak and disorganized "Gianetti" teams in their previous guises. The Australians getting snubbed totally was weird also, given that they did indeed have backing; should they have been accepted as a Pro Tour team Gillete probably would have held on.

Politics and money are ruining the sport bit by bit. Although a congratulations must be given to the power that be for cleaning it up somewhat.

I think the merger will deffinately make for a stronger team. The technology these two teams can bring together is huge, and we as a community of cyclists can all better from these two merging and the new technology that may evolve and become available. As for the UCI snubbing of certain teams, it was surprising to see them snub the Australian team as they have expressed their interest in expanding the Protour. There are alot of untapped cycling resources and talent in Australia that go by the wayside due to cycling being effectively a second-third tear sport here. An Australian protour team could have changed that.

I'm looking at provisional start lists for De Ronde and Paris - Roubaix, and I can't believe how this team managed to disappoint so far.
Only Millar (I think) doesn't have top 10 finish in one or both of these races, but his ride in De Ronde last year was impressive, and victory in De Panne confirms his pedigree.

Most of the riders have podium finishes in these races.

If it was only to the names on start list, this team should have been unbeatable.