Cycling: The French team TotalEnergies had – as expected – a difficult year in 2024. 2025 will not be easy for them either, as management mistakes from the past are still having an impact.
TotalEnergies 2024: Fewer points, more hope
Compared to the previous year, the TotalEnergies 2024 team has almost 1.000 Points less in the UCI ranking. However, this year has not been a clear step backwards. Having only dropped from 22nd to 23rd place, the squad has been significantly restructured. 13 victories and 20 further podium finishes are impressive. The greatest success was certainly the stage win at the Tour de France, for which Anthony Turgis It was almost Matteo Vercher also managed to win the domestic Grand Tour – but only almost. Apart from these two strokes of genius, that was it for podium places at WorldTour level. Many points in smaller races were mainly achieved by Emilien Jeanniere, Jordan Jegat and Mathieu Burgaudeau.
Two drivers end their careers
In recent years, Team TotalEnergies has clearly prioritized buying for big names over talent. Year after year, they brought in big names like Peter Sagan, Edvald Boasson Hagen, Niki Terpstra, Rein Taaramäe, and Sylvain Chavanel, but all of them were past their prime. Consequently, the desired results failed to materialize. The money, however, was paid. This is all supposed to change now. The effects were already clearly noticeable during the transfer window last season – and it's the same this time around. Julien Simon and Alexis Vuillermoz are retiring after a significantly less successful 2024 season. The departures of Dries van Gestel, Valentin Ferron , and Paul Ourselin are painful losses. In their place, eight new French riders will join the team. Many of them are only known to the most dedicated cycling experts.
TotalEnergies will need some time
Alexandre Delettre and Samuel Leroux have already ridden for several teams, but they are unlikely to reach WorldTour level. There is more hope for the younger newcomers. Joris Delbove, for example, won the Grand Prix of the Tour Alsace this year. Valentin Retailleau snatched a stage win at the Boucles de la Mayenne. These aren't the biggest races either, but at least six of the eight newcomers are 26 years old or younger. Perhaps the greatest hopes lie with Rayan Boulahoite . He is relatively unknown, having only ridden for Club Vendée U (essentially the club's own development team). However, he is considered a strong all-rounder with a lot of potential. He showed glimpses of this this year at races such as the Tour du Maroc and the Flèche du Sud. Admittedly, these are two smaller and less competitive stage races, but they feature very demanding stage profiles. Either way, TotalEnergies must hope for good development of its own talents and then make good decisions in the next transfer window.