Racing Rumours 2024 Part 1: Danny Hart Off Cube, Vali to YT, the End of GT Factory Racing, Kintner Off Norco, & More
What a wild season! For some race fans, the off-season shenanigans are as intriguing as the racing itself and so we begin the silly business of internet investigation and rumour filtering until the UCI team list is revealed early next year.
We have a while to go until most riders will start announcing they are "parting ways" with current teams, so we have collected a few of the rumours from our sources and reached out to those involved to get a clearer picture of what might be happening beyond internet opinions. It's important to say that much of the information below is rumours, and only rumours , of some rider and team movements for 2024.
Danny Hart off Cube, with no 2024 deal secured
Danny Hart Could be one of the biggest names potentially switching seats ahead of the 2024 season as he may be saying goodbye to Cube Factory Racing after three years with the team.
The UK racer and multiple World Champion has not been able to repeat his great successes from previous teams since joining in 2021, and hasn't been on a World Cup podium since a 2nd place at Leogang in June 2022. While the main rumour has just been Danny leaving the German brand we have heard a suggestion of a few brands so we spoke to Danny to get the final say on his 2024 plans.
Danny Hart has told Pinkbike that: "Right now I have no deal for next year. I have even considered doing my own thing, but with the industry being in such a bad place, that looks very difficult. 'No budget' comes up every way I turn."
It would be a huge shock if a racer with the calibre of Danny Hart couldn't find a setup so we hope someone can find him a place for future race seasons.
Vali Höll moving back to YT?
Another seismic team change comes as Vali Höll has already seemingly confirmed she is off the RockShox Trek Racing setup she joined in 2021.
Following her win in Snowshoe and securing the overall title Vali Höll said in a post-race interview: "There's going to be a few changes next year so it's a bit sad. All they did the last five-six years I was on SRAM/RockShox it's been pretty incredible. We won I think four World Champ titles and three overalls together. It was just an incredible journey."
We contacted Vali for confirmation on this but at the time of publication, we have yet to receive a response.
As a move is confirmed for Vali, the rumour mill is at full speed with the Austrian rider surely receiving an influx of offers as one of the biggest talents on the race circuit with a 2023 season securing the most Elite women's race wins alongside the World Champ and World Cup overall titles.
The biggest noise we are hearing is that Vali is making a shift back to YT. It's fairly rare to see athletes return to brands at this stage in their careers, but the partnership always made sense to us. The rumour mill suggests the deal is for a (well-deserved) significant amount of money, and we're hopeful this signals a growing elite DH racing program for YT next year. We contacted the brand for more information, but they declined to comment at this time.
It's the end of GT Factory Racing as we know it
In perhaps one of the worst-kept secrets so far this silly season we can confirm that after speaking to GT they are officially not going to be fielding a factory team next year. We were told in our conversation with GT that the decision has come from internal decisions as the brand is currently undergoing a major shift as it tries to find its own place within the larger brand conglomerate of PON. Earlier this year GT became a "stand-alone business" and moved back to Southern California and we were told the brand is searching for its new focus and did not want to mess around its racers with uncertainty so it told the riders in the middle of the season that the team would be closing. In part this was also the right time for the brand as we were told contracts were up at the end of 2023.
While it was a tough decision for the company and 2024 will be the first year without a factory GT team in many years, the brand hinted that it may still feature at World Cups under other setups. One aspect we did have confirmed is that GT is still aiming to be at DH World Cups in some form, but we are told that GT is done with Enduro for the time being based on internal changes and market headwinds. We weren't told any more details on this as discussions are still ongoing at this time.
Other enduro team changes for 2024?
The whole of the bike industry is continuing to feel immense pressure at this moment in time as sales fall, inventory remains high, and companies are working to rein in sports marketing budgets. With tough market conditions, we are told that some brands are seeing this as natural a time to step away from racing as budgets are shifted and the costs of race teams are a tough sell internally.
There's been a lot of frustration in the pits with World Cup enduro, so it's tempting to see the dropping of teams as a reaction to broadcasting and organizational changes, but from what we have heard so far these were not factors in teams deciding to leave the sport. To paint a more complete picture of the state of enduro in 2024 we reached out to many of the top teams about their plans for the future.
Teams Shutting Down
Ibis Racing -
 | We are at the end of the road for this World Cup season and this will also mark the end of Ibis Racing as we know it… It has been a privilege to be a platform for athletes to grow and give them the opportunity to chase their dreams! After numerous podiums, winning the team overall and developing up-and-comers into world-class racers it is now time to say goodbye. At least for now. We couldn’t have done any of this without all of you guys so a massive thank you to our supporters, sponsors, riders and staff both past and present. It has been an absolute honour and we hope to be back at the races with you all at some point! |
Devinci Global Racing -
| Mountain bike racing has always resonated deeply in our roots here at Devinci. It's easy to say that every one of us here are strong racing fans. We've been part of the Enduro World Series and what it has become since the early days, and as the sport evolves, so does Devinci. The last few months at Devinci have been filled with amazing stories, new products, a fresh brand identity, with new values & vision. After careful consideration, in alignment with our evolving vision, we have decided not to field a team for the Enduro World Cup in 2024. This decision was not taken lightly, and it reflects a shift in our focus towards different aspects of our brand and the mountain biking community. Our commitment to the sport of mountain biking remains unwavering, and we will always continue to support riders, ambassadors, grassroots racing, and the broader mountain biking community in various ways. This includes our dedication to producing bikes here in Canada that empower riders of all levels to quench their thirst for freedom. While we won't be participating in the Enduro World Cup in 2024, we are really excited about the future and the opportunities it holds, including an important announcement coming in only a few weeks’ time. We look forward to continuing to share more about our ‘We Make Riders’ vision and the exciting upcoming developments. We want to express our gratitude to the riders, fans, and partners who have supported us throughout our journey in the Enduro World Series, and the Enduro World Cup. Your passion and dedication to the sport will continue to inspire us. |
GT - (see above)
Confirmed 2024 Teams
Commencal Enduro Project - The Commencal Enduro Project has confirmed they plan to race the World Cups in 2024
Forbidden Synthesis Team -
| From the past 20+ years I've been at the WC races there are many companies that have left and come back, funny to see the most successful companies never leave racing and tough out the hard times. As for us I'm happy to say our great group of riders our signed on for another 2 years, and we are hungry to help Rhys dominate more, Alex achieve his goals, and watch Emmy grow up as a full-blown pro athlete. I think it's unfortunate all the pit rumours going on staining everyone's minds with ideas there will be no enduro in the future or other horrible lies. Keep in mind we all love our enduro/trail bikes and it's the bike most sold. I would love for it to have live TV that it deserves like DH and XC, but I guess it will just have to wait for now. Let's be patient. |
Sunn French Connexion Racing By Alpe D'Huez - We have received word that while the Sunn French Connexion Racing By Alpe D'Huez team will be at World Cups, this won't be the team's only focus with a "plan to go back to the Enduro core roots with an alternative race circuit."
YT Mob -
| 2023 was just the start of our Enduro journey. We’re committed to our racing program and our athletes. In 2024 The YT Mob will continue to grow, and we will fight for the top step. |
Specialized Enduro Team -
| Specialized Enduro Team will continue racing Enduro next year. Indeed, it's in the DNA of Specialized to race at the highest level of racing, enduro included. We don't know exactly the roster yet, but we're working on it now. However, I understand that teams are stopping their investment next year, and that's a shame for our sport. But in my opinion, it comes from multiple factors. |
Giant Factory Off-Road Team - The Giant team have confirmed to Pinkbike that it is committed to racing EDR World Cups next year.
Orbea Fox Enduro Team - Confirmation has been given to us that the Orbea team will continue in 2024 and is planning to race all EDR / E-EDR World Cups.
Nukeproof / Sram Factory Racing -
| As we all know the industry is struggling a bit at the moment due to overstock after the covid boom and so budgets are tight for race programs and marketing, but I am sure that will get better over the next few years. Nukeproof / Sram factory racing will be back in 2024 racing the full UCI Enduro World Cup. There seems to be some negative rumours going around at the moment about the Enduro world series. I think running the Enduro alongside a DH World Cup is always going to make the Enduro not look as good or as exciting, as DH is live on a big screen and the crowds can easily access and watch on 1 course. However Maydena and Derby this year proved that Enduro racing can easily be as fun and exciting to watch as a DH or XC World Cup. The organisers of each round should take some tips from the Aussies. The Enduro for the racers is as good as ever though with the level of skills, speed and competition at an all-time high. The courses in Chatel this weekend for the final round are amazing, although the Enduro course marking team really do need to stop taping out all the jumps on tracks that I can still ride at 51 with no problems and are open to the public in the bike park. This isn’t helping make our sport look good. ESO – this is a World Cup, if you can’t do a few jumps you shouldn’t really be racing! At Nukeproof we believe racing at the world level in Enduro is a great place to test and develop our amazing range of Enduro bikes and the Nukeproof Mega has proven this over the years and alongside the Giga we have 2 very popular choices for Enduro bike customers. |
**Editor's Note: this quote came from before the public revelations of financial woes at Nukeproof's parent company Signa. We've followed up with the team but were told that nothing can be said at this time.
Lapierre Zipp Collective - It will come as no surprise that the Lapierre team are fully onboard for next season, we were told: "Enduro is a strong discipline and a big business for the brands, stronger than the Ebike XC or the XCM. So if tomorrow we plan to stop something, it will probably not be the enduro racing and the enduro world cups. Even if we have a lack of visibility and consideration compared to the XCO or the DHI... "
Orange Factory Racing -
| Racing is in our blood at Orange and our intention is for the team to continue for next season, there are a lot of pieces to pull together but hopefully you’ll see us between the tapes again next year. |
Trek Factory Racing - Pinkbike has been informed that Trek fully intends to continue racing Enduro World Cups and support Hattie Harnden.
After receiving responses from a number of teams, we contacted the race organisers at WBD for a comment and a response to some of the issues brought up by the teams. We were sent the following comment:
| The 2023 season saw a record number of teams take part in the UCI Mountain Bike World Series. It’s perfectly normal year-on-year to see teams merge and change. We wish the teams, athletes and team management all the best throughout transfer season and are excited to see new 2024 team colours and line-ups. Enduro is an ever-evolving racing format that has always been at the forefront of bike industry and trail innovation. In 2023, when enduro was elevated to UCI World Cup status, the format enjoyed a huge influx of extra event staff and a higher level of delivery than ever before, leading to one of the most incredible race seasons to date. Naturally, comparisons are drawn between formats and coverage, and in order to showcase all formats to the best of each sport, we will continue to focus on improving highlights production for enduro while continuing to upscale the live production for cross-country and downhill. |
As part of this article we have also reached out to the Cannondale, Canyon, Polygon Factory Racing, Rocky Mountain and Yeti teams although at this time we have either received no response or were told there is no comment.
Who is currently without a team & looking for a setup?
Following the news that multiple companies are closing down race teams for 2024 we reached out to the affected riders to see if they can share an update on how they have dealt with the news and what plans are building for next year.
Katy Winton - The Scottish Enduro racer was one of the first to suggest the end of GT Factory Racing publicly and after her statement on social media we reached out and were sent the following update: "I’m looking at all possibilities on and off the bike. I have nothing on the table at the moment, but I’m working on it."
Greg Callaghan - Another big name in Enduro racing currently on the hunt for a team is Greg Callaghan who wasn't able to share too much with us as it's still pretty early but he did say the aim is to be on a team but his plan B is to just create his own thing and keep on racing.
Zakarias Johansen - ex-Ibis team racer Zakarias Johnsen supplied Pinkbike with the following comment on his status for 2024.
| With the entire bike industry slowing down we knew that the main sponsor and a relatively small bike brand was gonna have to cut their marketing / the race teams budget for next year. As a rider it's never a fun moment when you realize you're without a job for the upcoming season and what you love to do and have work so hard to be able to do as a job is no longer a sure thing. With many teams deciding to cut down their budgets at the same time it meant that there were more riders than normal looking for a ride and fewer teams to offer one. So it's not been easy and I have definitely had to prepare myself for the scenario that I might not be racing next year. It is what it is and sadly we riders don’t have much to say, it's the numbers that decide. |
Raphaela Richter - Another rider losing a team sport after the shutdown of the Ibis team is German racer Raphaela Richter. Luckily she has brighter news than most as while she is yet to sign a contract is in talks with a team for next year. We were given the following update.
| I still haven’t signed a contract yet but it looks really good to have found a team that I’m looking forward to working with next year. We‘re in finalizing some details and component deals these days. I feel like in that team I play a big role in some of the decision-making and I currently enjoy having somewhat more personal contact to future sponsors like I used to have when I was a privateer. |
Ethan Craik - Along with the confirmation from GT, Ethan Craik has stated that it's true he is looking for something new next year and after an amazing 2nd-place at Mont-Sainte-Anne he will surely be in good standing to secure a contract. While Ethan was able to confirm he is on the market he was not able to share any extra details with us at this time.
Ryan Pinkerton - Another rider who saw great success with GT this season is Ryan Pinkerton. The Junior World Cup overall winner told Pinkbike that while he can't say where he will end up he did hint that something is in the works.
Evan Wall - Evan Wall is also a rider struggling to find something for 2024 as he told us he didn't have any interesting to share at the moment but he still plans to be at all of the races next year.
Cole Lucas - Following the shut-down of the Ibis team Cole Lucas is still without a setup for 2024 and told Pinkbike: "At the minute I have nothing set In stone for next year. Have had no luck with getting a team ride so am trying to organise my own setup at the minute. But even that is proving to be hard to try get some budget at any brand."
Jess Blewitt - A spot of good news is that the incredibly talented Jess Blewitt has confirmed to Pinkbike that she is signed to a new team in 2024 although that's all she could say for now.
Jill Kintner en route to winning the 2023 North American Enduro Cup.
Jill Kintner & Bryn Atkinson – After 11 years with Norco, Jill and Bryn are both currently without a bike sponsor for next year. Jill's list of accomplishments includes multiple Queen of Crankworx titles, and a long list of DH, enduro, and pumptrack victories. After making his name on the World Cup DH circuit, Bryn's become the king of cornering – there aren't many riders in the world that can make a bike move like he can.
We have heard plenty more rumours about next year's racing and are currently working on chasing down the facts. Expect more coming soon as the silly season continues.
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MBAs don't care about root, blood, or DNA. They only care about bonuses today because they will be leaching from a new company tomorrow.
MBAs ruin everything.
the "bean counters" of the world, do more good than harm. It's just you never hear about the hundreds of saved businesses from faulty, "passion driven" owners, who don't value being profitable so you can stay in business, but instead only hear about the ruthless, cold nature of pulling plugs when not doing so will bankrupt an entire company.
it's no differenent than a surgeon cutting necrotic tissue from a limb, maybe losing most of the limb, to save the life of a person.
@Bomadics: balancing act, if you don't pay enough attention to the numbers, there won't be a company left to employ the people
Alas it was all about the immediate bottom line and not the actual forethought of surviving the boom and bust that was covid.
It usually was some "passion project" that founded the company. The founders didn't spend months working on business plans, they saw a unique solution to a problem then built something.
a corporation that is unprofitable, dies.
Most large corporations are notoriously corrupt, or at least uncaring, if you disagree that's fine It doesn't change the facts. I will ask you one question. Corporations on the planet are getting huge and powerful, just use Black Rock, Vanguard and State Street as prime examples. Is the planet getting better or worse? The corporate structure currently in place, no matter how many mean well, needs to be radically changed, or we are in for a 1984 scenario or worse. If you actually believe that these entities have your best interest in mind, then please go join them and we will see who is on the right side of history my friend. If it's is ok for them to kill us, then it's ok for us to want them dead.
good day, sir!
same person typed both of these. In the same reply.
your cognative dissonance is showing, my good man! I can only assume that you meant the first quote for everyone but yourself????
"All good until you're the limb! These are humans, not "beans", you sum up the exact problem by your own words, corporations do not value people, only numbers."
To add, a 'necessary evil ' argument is singularly naïve or disingenuous. Corporations are a lot like a mutated monarchy, where there are better rulers and worse rulers. Strangely, almost invariably, the better rulers were those who focused on the wellbeing of the people that made up the kingdom rather than seeing them as statistics that impacted outcomes.
I think most peoples distaste for these announcements is amplified by the subtext that the corporation mouthpieces are saying whatever they think is needed to avoid this decision negatively affect sales.
Then... then why do people call us human beans?
Checkmate.
It’s then CEOs, COOs, etc that make the decisions. ‘Bean counters’ don’t tell you what can and can’t be done, the numbers do. They simply provide those numbers.
They do however possess enough overconfidence that they could power a small city with it
Local business is the key, keep the owners invested in the community because that is where they live and work too. The global corporations are the problem that is why we are seeing so many bike companies fail. They got greedy and don't care about anything but the profit and the end of the month, so they will cut anything and anybody that makes the numbers look bad to shareholders.
You're arguing in favour of local business, but...that completely invalidates supporting a global race team, sorry.
Wishing you all the best for 2024.
Wyn doesn't get massive race result's, but for brand exposure he's pretty bloody hard to beat!
That´s why he continiues his work
Across the board bike sales are down. As just one of many references/sources: m.youtube.com/watch?v=qHO7BnY-FwY&pp=ygUQI210YnRyaWJlcG9kY2FzdA%3D%3D
For example the less expensive trail worthy bike from Ibis, the Ripmo AF MSRP was 3.5K. They are now on sale at 2.6K for the cheapest config which is nice but is still the max I have ever paid for a trail bike.
The pizza can feed a family of four.
-Brett Tippie
Here's a thought; sell the overstock for less $. Moving more units at fewer dollars must beat selling fewer units for top dollar, no? Stimulate the market by lowering prices.... I feel like that'd be a successful move.
When I ride a new bike I want to drop double what I paid for the last one on, it needs to blow me away. I've ridden plenty, but none that make my 2018 27.5 feel terrible yet.
No sympathy for the industry here.
This. I got a new bike in mid 2018, RRP was $6000aud. I paid $4500 AUD for it.
In 2022 you could still buy the exact same bike, frame and components etc as a 22 model for $7500aud - no discounts anywhere.
Same company currently has up to 40% off some of their 2023 models that it can't shift.
They took the piss out of consumers and are now paying the price.
I’ve only been mountain biking for 20 years, but none of those years have been anywhere close to next year, from a strictly fun-on-the-dirt standpoint. Bikes and trails are so good right now, I feel you really have to go out of your way to have anything but the best time every time out.
But, yeah. Sucks so much.
Some people have fun while working hard. The things that make you happiest are always the things you've had to struggle to get......
Where do you live? Where do you ride? Where have you been? Take a breath, they work for us…
I’m going to assume you aren’t one of those “I don’t care if they aren’t allowed, I ride mine wherever I want”
Not so much with the E bikes you're frothing about. Zero achievement involved.
Riding bikes in the woods is neither work nor hard. You child.
If they had the time and resources, most riders in this region would sign up for daily rides of 3000ft over 15 miles, by the way—in a heartbeat. Your high-achieving numbers are pretty much a couple of laps at a very popular spot outside our mid-size city. Do it all the time.
Get over yourself.
I've done all of the things you listed. Didn't need a motor to help me cope.
Different kind of work.
Worth noting that in the Vital Team Rumours thread frequently the info drops come from the MUTN podcast or other forums, it's not like it's all original facts/info springing up from within.
By the way, the reporting back is a few weeks old, as it can be clearly seen above.
The exception of course is (as someone pointed out this season) Dorval AM - supporting fairly big name Commencal riders - which is in fact an asset management company. So I guess they indeed see some financial opportunities in the sport, that literally being their thing.
Me, going for a few casual drinks with friends
jack daniels: you should fight someone and puke in that closet
First things cut.. Race. Marketing.
When sales starts complaining because they don't have any help... they'll reinvest in both. It's a cycle.
The companies that don't panic and just adjust their expectations are the ones that will come out the other side way way ahead. Companies have been making record profits and now they're just... profitable.... and they're panicking. All you need to do is realize that profits are profits. You can't make record profits every quarter forever. Especially when you haven't been reinvesting that money this entire time.
The smart companies have taken that money and invested in marketing and product development. Taken slightly smaller profit margin numbers and invested in the brands. The dumb ones have shuffled it around and fed the board of directors and stock holders maximized profit margins with little to no reinvestment.
I think we'll start seeing a lot of brands going under and/or brands that haven't been market share leaders will start to become market share leaders.
No there isn’t, how hard is it to put together a filing cabinet? Lol
Also Orange: "No we won't tell you what any of our frames actually weigh"
- Nigel Page from Nukeproof
This would be hilarious if it wasn't so f*cking sad. I mean... agreed. But, with UCI having dropped the Australian rounds, along with anything outside of Europe, it doesn't seem that they've learned a damn thing.
Spesh also has 3 high profile (and likely high paid) riders... so taking on more would be tough. I'd imagine Vali is searching for the biggest paycheck in women's racing so she'll need a team with room in the budget.
Be interesting to see if she joins the mob or a new team is formed that runs on SRAM. Switching to Fox would be a huge change for her amidst all the other changes
Re-seed the order last stage and run it with full coverage, similar to DH. You'd get great coverage of the riders, an exciting finish, and a good reason for spectators to congregate at the end.
Making is live may be the hard part... but even if there is a few hour delay and edited coverage, it'd still be way better than what we have now.
You'll still have 20 mins of action spread over a couple of mountain sides for a couple of days. And you'll have exactly the same difficulties filming it. DOA
Enduro peaked when they were doing massive adventure races in Chile, etc. Now its just a bunch of mini DH races on the same courses over and over with zero adventure and zero mystique.
2. The lack of that kind of polished brand ambassador trained horseshit in interviews is why I watch DH instead of, say, NASCAR.
Are women disproportionately affected by the state of the industry as it relates to professional racing? My guess is yes.
**Editor's Note: this quote came from before the public revelations of financial woes at Nukeproof's parent company Signa. We've followed up with the team but were told that nothing can be said at this time.
In other news, no word on their roster for next year.
It's unfortunate that as children, we are (were) taught to not spread rumours or talk about things that don't concern us, ever. Even trivial things. As a representation of character and moral compass.
Now we live in a time where not only is it acceptable and normal for adults, media outlets and social platforms to spread rumour for profit (viewership, engagement clicks, etc.) but it's baked into their business model to do so.