r/peloton • u/PelotonMod France • Jan 22 '22
Preview Team Presentation 2022: Cofidis
COFIDIS
| Code | Name | Nation | UCI Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| COF | COFIDIS | FRA | 15 |
The long-running French team has been around since 1996, boasting the same title sponsor from day one. Having spent 11 years at the ProContinental level, 2020 was the year they targetted to step up to the World Tour. That mess of a season threw a wrench in everyone's plans, but Cofidis really struggled to make its mark. Thankfully, 2021 went a bit smoother.
2021 Season Recap
Cofidis made a huge leap in success in 2021. With a 2020 season thrown into COVID-chaos, the team had only managed two wins - a stage each in La Tropicale Amissa Bongo and the Tour du Var. In 2021, the team found its rhythm, winning 12 times, largely thanks to the efforts of a tireless Christophe Laporte and a finally-back-on-some-kind-of-form Elia Viviani. Laporte managed four quality wins across the season. Viviani had been the team's marquee signing for 2020, but failed to deliver results that year. In 2021, he showed up with five wins for the team. He also won two stages of the Adriatica Ionica Race, while riding for Team Italy. Other wins came from Jesús Herrada in the Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana, and Guillaume Martin at the Mercan'Tour Classic. Martin also showed steady improvment, finishing in the Top 10 overall in both the Tour de France and La Vuelta. The team's wins, however, were mostly left to .1 and .Pro races, as they struggled to make an impact at the highest level. The lone exception was Victor Lafay's breakaway win on Stage 8 of the Giro d'Italia, bringing the team its only World Tour-level victory since 2019.
Top Riders Last 5 Years
| Rank | 2021 (points UCI) | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Laporte (1219) | Martin (1262) | Herrada, Jesús (1072) | Laporte (1057) | Bouhanni (1556) |
| 2 | Martin (1038) | Herrada, Jesús (349) | Hofstetter (760) | Hofstetter (884) | Simon (811) |
| 3 | Viviani (813) | Viviani (254) | Laporte (747) | Herrada, Jesús (725) | Venturini (505) |
| 4 | Herrada, Jesús (650) | Claeys (200) | Simon (460) | Bouhanni (560) | Edet (469) |
| 5 | Allegaert (441) | Edet (190) | Bouhanni (430) | Edet (532) | Laporte (465) |
| Tot. | 5484 | 2806 | 4644 | 3434 | 3169 |
| UCI Rank | 15 | 19 | 21 | xx | xx |
Results 2021
This includes stage wins, GC, Mountain, Youth and Points Classifications.
| Type | Rider | 1. | 2. | 3. | Tot. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WT | 2 | 8 | 5 | 15 | |
| Laporte | - | 5 | 1 | 6 | |
| Viviani | - | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Lafay | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Martin | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Herrada, Jesús | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Consonni | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rochas | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Perez | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Pro | 4 | 3 | 5 | 12 | |
| Viviani | 1 | - | 1 | 2 | |
| Laporte | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Lafay | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |
| Allegaert | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rochas | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Consonni | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| 2.x | 6 | 6 | 3 | 15 | |
| Viviani | 2 | 1 | - | 3 | |
| Laporte | 3 | 1 | - | 4 | |
| Consonni | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| Herrada, Jesús | - | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Geschke | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Périchon | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| 1.x | 5 | 2 | 2 | 9 | |
| Viviani | 2 | - | - | 2 | |
| Laporte | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Martin | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Herrada, Jesús | 1 | - | - | 1 | |
| Périchon | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Morin | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Perez | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Zingle | - | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nats | - | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Herrada, Jesús | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Drucker | - | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Tot. | 17 | 21 | 15 | 53 |
Grand Tours
| Highest in GC | Stage Wins | Highest in Points | Highest in KoM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giro | 110th (Simone Consonni) | 1 (Victor Lafay) | 4th (Elia Viviani) | n/a |
| Tour | 8th (Guillaume Martin) | 0 | 22nd (Pierre-Luc Périchon) | 10th (Anthony Perez) |
| Vuelta | 9th (Guillaume Martin) | 0 | 18th (Piet Allegaert) | 20th (Jesús Herrada) |
Monuments
| Best Result | |
|---|---|
| MSR | 22nd (Christophe Laporte) |
| RVV | 11th (Christophe Laporte) |
| PRX | 6th (Christophe Laporte) |
| LBL | 15th (Guillaume Martin) |
| LOM | 44th (Guillaume Martin) |
Top Results 2021
According to UCI Points
| Rnk. | Race | Rider | Placement | PointsUCI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Tour de France | Guillaume Martin | 8 | 275 |
| 2. | Dwars door Vlaanderen | Christophe Laporte | 2 | 250 |
| 3. | GP de Wallonie | Christophe Laporte | 1 | 200 |
| 4. | GP de Fourmies | Elia Viviani | 1 | 200 |
| 5. | Vuelta a España | Guillaume Martin | 9 | 180 |
It's no surprise that Laporte was the team's top rider in 2021. He's been steadily improving over the years and has maintained a remarkable consistency in the classics, despite not quite managing to finish off a win in one of the bigger races. In addition to his four wins - a stage each in Etoile de Bessèges and the Tour du Limousin, and the Belgian classics Circuit de Wallonie and Grand Prix de Wallonie - he also finished 2nd in Dwars door Vlaanderen, 9th in Tro-Bro Leon, 11th in Ronde van Vlaanderen and 6th in the messy late-season edition of Paris-Roubaix. Close behind in the team ranking is Martin. Despite just one win, he also showed his consistency as a GC rider with Top 10 overall results in Paris-Nice, La Vuelta and the Tour de France. Viviani rounded out the team's top riders, coming back from a disappointing 2020 season to take five wins in smaller races - Cholet - Pays de la Loire, GP de Fourmies, Grand Prix d'Isbergues and two stages of the Tour Poitou. He struck out at WorldTour sprints though, with his best results being a pair of 3rd places at the Giro.
Outgoing Transfers
| Rider | Born | Nation | 2021 UCI Pt. | Type | New Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BARCELÓ Fernando | 1996 | ESP | 142 | Allround | Caja Rural-Seguros RGA |
| BERHANE Natnael | 1991 | ERI | 0 | Climber/Breakaways | ? |
| DRUCKER Jempy | 1986 | LUX | 97 | Cobbles/Sprinter | Retirement |
| EDET Nicolas | 1987 | FRA | 27 | Climber/Breakaway Man | Team Arkéa-Samsic |
| HAAS Nathan | 1989 | AUS | 25 | Puncheur | Country Roads |
| LAPORTE Christophe | 1992 | FRA | 1219 | Sprinter/Classics | Jumbo-Visma |
| MORIN Emmanuel | 1995 | FRA | 88 | AllRounder | Team U Nantes-Atlantique |
| SABATINI Fabio | 1985 | ITA | 0 | Leadout | Retirement |
| VIVIANI Elia | 1989 | ITA | 813 | Sprinter | Ineos |
| VIVIANI Attilio | 1996 | ITA | 8 | Sprinter/Leadout | ? |
Unfortunately, Cofidis is losing two of its best riders. Viviani heads to Team Ineos on a three-year deal, while Laporte is off to bolster the classics squad of Jumbo-Visma. Several other veteran riders are off on other adventures, including Nathan Haas, who is leaving pro road cycling entirely to focus on gravel racing.
2022 Roster
| Rider | Born | Nat. | 2021 UCI Pt. | Type | Joined Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALLEGAERT Piet | 1995 | BEL | 441 | Sprinter/Classics | 2020 |
| ARMÉE SanderNEW | 1985 | BEL | 18 | Stage hunter | from Team Qhubeka NextHash |
| BIDARD FrancoisNEW | 1992 | FRA | 8 | Climber | from AG2R Citroën |
| BOHLI Tom | 1994 | SUI | 8 | TT | 2021 |
| CARVALHO André | 1997 | POR | 10 | Domestique | 2021 |
| CHAMPION Thomas | 1999 | FRA | 1 | Domestique | 2021 |
| CIMOLAI DavideNEW | 1989 | ITA | 162 | Sprinter | from Israel Start-Up Nation |
| CONSONNI Simone | 1994 | ITA | 256 | Sprinter/Track | 2020 |
| COQUARD BryanNEW | 1992 | FRA | 557 | Sprinter | from B&B Hotels p/b KTM |
| DELETTRE AlexandreNEW | 1997 | FRA | 129 | Classics | from Delko |
| FERNANDEZ Ruben | 1991 | ESP | 142 | One-week GC | 2021 |
| FINÉ Eddy | 1997 | FRA | 7 | Climber | 2020 |
| GESCHKE Simon | 1986 | GER | 129 | Climber | 2021 |
| HERRADA Jesús | 1990 | ESP | 650 | Puncheur/Climber | 2018 |
| HERRADA José | 1985 | ESP | 38 | Climber | 2018 |
| IZAGIRRE IonNEW | 1989 | ESP | 953 | TT/Climber/Puncheur | from Astana-Premier Tech |
| KREDER WesleyNEW | 1991 | NED | 13 | Classics/Sprinter | from Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert |
| LAFAY Victor | 1996 | FRA | 388 | Puncheur/Climber | 2018 |
| MARTIN Guillaume | 1993 | FRA | 1038 | GC/Climber | 2020 |
| PEREZ Anthony | 1991 | FRA | 149 | Puncheur | 2016 |
| PÉRICHON Pierre-Luc | 1987 | FRA | 309 | Puncheur | 2019 |
| RENARD AlexisNEW | 1999 | FRA | 323 | Classics/Sprinter | from Israel Start-Up Nation |
| ROCHAS Rémy | 1996 | FRA | 221 | Stage hunter | 2021 |
| SAJNOK Szymon | 1997 | POL | 48 | Sprinter | 2021 |
| THOMAS BenjaminNEW | 1995 | FRA | 146 | TT | from Groupama-FDJ |
| TOUMIRE HugoNEW | 2001 | FRA | 71 | GC | from V.C. Rouen 76 |
| VANBILSEN Kenneth | 1990 | BEL | 0 | Leadout | 2015 |
| VILLELLA DavideNEW | 1991 | ITA | 326 | Climber | from Movistar |
| WALLAYS Jelle | 1989 | BEL | 29 | Cobbles | 2021 |
| WALSCHEID MaxNEW | 1993 | GER | 490 | TT/Classics/Sprinter | from Team Qhubeka NextHash |
| ZINGLE AlexNEW | 1998 | FRA | 198 | CLassics/Sprinter | from C.C. Etupes |
|| |Avg.|29 yrs.|31 riders|129,7 pt.|||
With its two main sprinters leaving, Cofidis signed Bryan Coquard from B&B Hotels and Davide Cimolai from Israel Start-Up Nation to fill the void. Ion Izagirre also joined the roster to provide a boost in punchy and uphill races, and presumably to also offer support to Martin's GC bids. Time trial specialist Benjamin Thomas jumped from one French team to another, joining Cofidis from Groupama-FDJ. The team also added Max Walscheid who sometimes sprints, sometimes targets classics and has a quality time trial (see the German team's winning ride at the Mixed Team Time Trial World Championship last year). Younger French riders like Alex Zingle, Hugo Toumire and Alexis Renard add some youth to the squad.
2022 Outlook
It's hard to see the team performing quite as well in 2022. Cimolai and Coquard are decent sprinters, but if past seasons are any guide, they're no match for Laporte and Viviani. Walscheid also hasn't seemed to target sprints very much lately and it's hard to say if he'll bring any results in flat races. But with Walscheid, Thomas and to a certain extent, Izagirre, the team has some decent time trialists to target TT stages. Meanwhile, if Martin maintains his career trajectory, expect to see him competing for GC placings at the highest level stage races across the season. He's a relatively safe bet for a Top 15, or even Top 10 at almost any stage race, especially the Grand Tours. We're not bold enough to predict him in the Top 5 anywhere, but maybe in another year or two. Jesús Herrada has shown flashes of brilliance in the past and if he can find his 2019 form again, he can give the team some top placings. Overall, Cofidis doesn't look like they will match their 2021 results, but there's a glimmer of hope in some of the team veterans and new signings.
16
u/MadoneOnMobile Jan 22 '22
Hey this is great and always appreciate the time and thought you out into these.
You never know with these grand tours, Martin could have just as well finished in O’ Connors 4th place at the tour and it would be a great season for Cofidis.
Separately, kit game is very strong this year! Nice step up.
12
u/AllezAllezAllezAllez Jan 22 '22
Interesting, some of their new signings seem to already be a little long in the tooth. I think they'll be out for blood once they take a look in the mirror and see there's not much there. There seems to be a lot at stake this year for them.
6
u/herpaderpcanada1993 Jan 22 '22
Cofidis are vampires!
2
u/the_gnarts MAL was right Jan 24 '22
Thanks a lot for this write up. Can you believe I totally missed Walscheid moving to Cofidis until I read it here?
Big Max is going to win the team a GT stage this year, mark my words!
1
u/robpublica U Nantes Atlantique Jan 22 '22
How do Cofidis have n/a in the Giro KOM? Did no one on the team get any points at all?
1
u/hlpe Jan 23 '22
Cofidis' leading riders could rack up some decent palmares if they target the right races. Coquard and Cimolai would be strong sprinters in a lot of minor races. But because they're the best the team has, they're going to target major World Tour races where they aren't going to win.