Former Vuelta a España leader and stage winner David de la Cruz has inked a last-minute, year-long deal with the Q36.5 PoTeam that will see the veteran Spaniard in the professional peloton in 2024.
In what is likely to be one of the final signings of the 2023-2024 transfer market, 34-year-old De la Cruz is hoping to bounce back after a complicated 2023, marked by illness and crashes.
One of Spain’s most experienced pros and best known for his stage racing results in a career stretching back to 2012, De la Cruz has previously formed part of Astana, UAE Team Emirates, Team Sky and QuickStep. He has finished three times in the Vuelta a España top ten overall, and won a stage in his home Grand Tour in 2016.
Despite a busy transfer market this off-season, a number of well-known and experienced riders remain with teams for 2024. That list comes with a permanent caveat that some team rosters have still to be completed and some riders signings have to still to be announced. However the new season is less than a month away.
Currently amongst their number are former Giro d’Italia stage winners Domenico Pozzovivo (Israel-Premier Tech), Joe Dombrowski (Astana Qazaqstan) and 2013 Vuelta a España King of the Mountains Nicolas Edet (Arkea-Samsic), longstanding 2022 Vuelta a España leader Christian Odd Eiking (EF Education-EasyPost), Colombian sprinter Alvaro Hodeg (UAE Team Emirates) and Tsgabu Girmay (Jayco-AIUIa), who has won the Ethiopian National Championships in road and time trial categories a combined total of 10 times.
Relieved to no longer be looking for a team for 2024, De la Cruz told Spanish sports daily MARCA that he felt his lengthy wait for a contract had been “somewhat undeserved” but that as the Spanish proverb put it, “if it’s anything good, then you’ve got to wait for it.”
“I’m pleased to have reached an agreement with them, all the bad moments have passed now. I’ve signed for one season, which is ideal for both parties. We have to see if the two sides are a good match, which I think we are, and then we’ll see.”
De la Cruz said he had talked with various teams about a berth for 2024, “but out of respect for them, I’ll keep the names to myself. However, the one that made me feel most motivated was this project. I didn’t have to think too hard about it.”
“It’s a young, ambitious team whose best years are yet to come, but with experienced riders in its roster.”
After a difficult 2023, De la Cruz told MARCA that “I want to look at it in the best way possible. It’s going to be complicated because I’ll be using completely different equipment. I’ve never had such a big change in my career. But I hope to adapt in the best way possible, and with the calendar I get, perform at the best level possible.”
