As the "last step in career," why did Bettiol suddenly choose Vinokourov over his "second family"?

Money will undoubtedly have played a role in Bettiol's choice. Alexandre Vinokourov struck a deal with China's XDS at Astana, making him millions richer. Men like Wout Poels, Sergio Higuita, and Diego Ulissi were tempted to transfer before 2025, but Bettiol arrived early in August. "The first weeks with the team have been good. It's a new team, but there are a lot of Italians and good guys working there. They welcomed me as if I had been riding here for years. I had no problems adapting to the team; I immediately showed that with my results."

Bettiol debuted in the Renewi Tour for Astana in late August with his Italian champion's jersey around his shoulders. He finished 10th in the GC. He was not entirely up to par in the Canadian and Italian fall races, but he hopes to change that in the winter. "I gave everything, and then next season, we'll see how it goes, with proper preparation, good planning, and things like that."

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And yet it must have felt strange when, in August at the Renewi Tour, he suddenly stopped wearing EF's pink jersey and rode with Astana on his chest instead. His old teammates were now suddenly his opponents. "When we race, we fight with each other. But off the bike, I can't possibly consider them enemies. I still say hello to all the staff because it feels like a second family when you have ridden in one team for so long. It will stay that way as long as I race. Maybe even after that."

"Astana is not a family for me, but it is going smoothly without any problems, and I look forward to the next few years," said Bettiol, whose task at Astana Qazaqstan will be to score a lot of UCI points along with the other acquisitions to defend a WorldTour license for the 2026-2028 term. "Normally, this is the last step in my career, and I want to perform as well as possible with all the knowledge I have gained over the years in the peloton. I'm sure this team has the tools for me to perform at my best, although, in today's cycling, it's not easy to achieve results. However, we will strive for that."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])