In the list of teams pre-registered for next season released by the UCI, Team Polti VisitMalta appeared as HAYF Sports VisitMalta, with the name of the management company in place of Polti. The reason became clear on the team’s social media in the following days, with a video conversation in which Ivan Basso and Francesca Polti looked back together on these three years of sponsorship and thanked each other for all they had shared.

Having said goodbye to its title sponsor, the time has also come to bid farewell to and thank five riders: Giovanni Lonardi and Ludovico Crescioli, who will move up to the WorldTour with Groupama FDJ, and Javier Serrano, Davide Bais and Andrea Pietrobon, whose contracts were not renewed.

While waiting to discover the new sponsors and riders of the Italian-Spanish ProTeam, an important piece of news arrived today: Ukyo Katayama, the former Formula 1 driver and founder of Team Ukyo, which has performed so well in the Continental category, is joining the company of Ivan Basso and Fran and Alberto Contador. That company is HAYF Sports, which, in addition to the team, owns the bike manufacturer AURUM and the events and experiences company SCIO Pro Cycling.

Fran Contador, general manager of Team Polti VisitMalta: “This is a very special and, in some ways, historic moment for us, because since the founding of HAYF Sports this is the first time we’re welcoming a new partner into the structure that until now has been represented by me, Alberto and Ivan. One of our main goals together with Ukyo will be to work from day one on developing Japanese cycling, drawing on the experience we’ve gained in youth cycling in Spain over the past few years. We want to help increase the number of people taking up the sport, spark ever-growing interest in cycling and, why not, one day see a great Japanese rider competing as a protagonist in the world’s biggest races”.

“It’s a strategic move that looks to tomorrow, rewards the seriousness and passion of our work — adds Ivan Basso — and will allow us to build an even more important future. We’ve had a long dialogue with Ukyo, built up over time, a significant gestation period, as important matters require. His arrival represents a great opportunity for our project, not only because of his career and his fame in his country, but because we immediately felt a strong personal rapport when we met him at the end of August. On this solid foundation, we hope this is the beginning of a long journey together, during which we can share great experiences, keep growing our project and celebrate many successes together”.

Ukyo Katayama: “Cycling has been a passion of mine since childhood. During my career as a Formula 1 driver in Europe, riding road bikes was an integral part of my training. In many ways, founding TEAM UKYO and pursuing the ambition of reaching the Grand Tours was a natural extension of that lifelong passion. Today, the opportunity to work alongside legends who have made their mark on cycling’s biggest stage, while creating opportunities for Japanese athletes to learn, develop and compete at the highest level through exposure to European cycling, is incredibly exciting. It’s a privilege to be part of an environment that brings together such exceptional experience and a shared ambition for the future. I’m excited about what we can achieve together. By combining our experience, expertise and international perspective with a clear vision and a strong commitment to development, we can create new opportunities for Japanese athletes and build a project with a lasting impact on the sport. I look forward to turning this shared ambition into tangible results and taking the next steps towards an even bigger future!”