Tour de Tietema-Unibet have made an enormous step of their pursuit of at some point using the Tour de France, with Unibet set to step as much as first title sponsor in 2025 after signing a brand new multi-year settlement.
The Dutch workforce will race below a French license in 2025 and turn out to be Unibet Tietema Rockets, the primary workforce in skilled biking with a ‘franchise’ title, and hope to kick on from using their first WorldTour occasions at Amstel Gold Race and the Renewi Tour in 2024.
The undertaking is run by former professional rider turned profitable YouTuber Bas Tietema, alongside enterprise companions Josse Wester and Devin van der Wiel, with vibrant kits and aggressive racing making up a part of the workforce’s identification. Tietema’s channel has amassed nearly 40 million views and greater than 180,000 subscribers in a matter of years.
“It looks like yesterday that Devin, Josse and I began this undertaking of making our personal biking workforce. We had nothing, simply our desires and imaginative and prescient and gathered companions and other people round who additionally believed in these desires,” learn an announcement from Tietema on X.
“Two years later, the workforce will get its personal title and worldwide identification.”
Alongside their profitable social media protection and continued YouTube perception into skilled racing, it is nonetheless with an all-out concentrate on the racing. They’ve managed two skilled wins of their first two seasons finally yr’s ZLM Tour and the Tour of Antalya in February, and confirmed what they may carry to Amstel with Brit Zeb Kyffin being a part of the day’s essential breakaway.
Tietema, who completed third at Paris-Roubaix U23 in his racing days, by no means made it to the Tour de France as a rider, nonetheless, he is decided to take action along with his workforce, the place he’s now a sports activities director.
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“Each biking workforce begins out with that one dream, the Tour de France. We have now been working in direction of that dream for a very long time and possibly exceeded the expectations of many already,” stated workforce proprietor Tietema on the workforce’s web site.
“To take action, we have to develop our riders’ stage, appeal to extra international companions and inform our story in one of the simplest ways attainable.
“We’re very happy with the event to this point and now we’re taking an enormous step in direction of realizing these desires.”
Whereas the Tour stays the primary purpose, the subsequent yr of racing sees Monument participation as the massive goal for Tietema and his workforce, alongside successful out within the Spring Classics.
“That was actually the purpose for this yr – to get into our first WorldTour races after which subsequent yr, first Monument,” stated Tietema to Cyclingnews talking in April, with a attainable eye on the Tour of Flanders.
“Then, in fact including extra WorldTour races like Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in that Flemish part, after which additionally bettering within the climbers group due to our final purpose of constructing it to the Tour de France.”
With a partnership alongside Unibet secured, the rapid way forward for the squad is assured, with 24 riders already confirmed for 2025, together with their winner from Antalya Hartthijs de Vries.
“We’re extremely happy with the workforce’s improvement and the way they’ve labored in direction of our joint purpose, the Tour de France. The workforce has an enormous potential and has already confirmed they’re able to growing in a short time,”, stated Neil Banbury, Chief Industrial and Advertising Officer at Kindred Group.
“From the start, their ambition, entrepreneurial spirit and the way in which they current themselves has been one thing that has impressed us and has been refreshing to the game. We won’t wait to see the Rockets in motion and develop to the subsequent stage.”