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Britain’s Ethan Hayter says he wants to “enjoy racing again” as he prepares to debut with his new team.<\/b><\/p>\n
Hayter, last year’s British road race champion, left Ineos Grenadiers to join Belgian squad Soudal-Quick Step on a two-year contract, a deal announced last August.<\/p>\n
“I want to enjoy every race I’m doing again and I firmly believe I can do it in this environment,” said the 26-year-old.<\/p>\n
Hayter felt frustrated towards the end of his five years with Ineos, with whom he won several World Tour stages.<\/p>\n
Tour de France stage winner Tom Pidcock also recently said<\/a> he was “in charge of my own destiny,” after he left Ineos, following an apparent fallout, to join the Swiss Q36.5 squad.<\/p>\n “The last couple of years haven’t been as good as I had wanted,” said Hayter.<\/p>\n “As soon as I found out the team [Soudal-Quick Step] was interested in me, I was excited, because it was a special feeling just at the thought of riding for a team with this culture and history.” <\/p>\n Hayter, a strong all-round rider with an ability to sprint, joins a team where Britain’s Mark Cavendish enjoyed much success, and which is home to double Olympic road race and time-trial champion Remco Evenepoel.<\/p>\n “I like sprinting after a hard race and the team signed me to finish off races, so it’s exciting to see the confidence they have in me,” Hayter added.<\/p>\n Hayter is among a number of recent Ineos departures, including team boss Rod Ellingworth and sporting director Steve Cummings, who helped mastermind Pidcock’s 2022 Tour stage win on Alpe d’Huez.<\/p>\n Ineos, seven-time Tour de France winners, said last month they are looking for more sponsorship<\/a> to help them compete against road cycling’s so-called super-teams – such as Tour winner Tadej Pogacar’s UAE Team Emirates-XRG. Spending is continuing to rise in a sport once dominated by Ineos, formerly known as Team Sky.<\/p>\n Ineos, now led by John Allert and performance director Scott Drawer, recently signed sprinter Caleb Ewan,<\/a> who joins Grand Tour lead riders Carlos Rodriguez and 2009 Tour winner Egan Bernal.<\/p>\n “The team will exist into the next cycle [from 2026],” said Allert. “We are very lucky to have owners that are very passionate about this sport.”<\/p>\n Hayter, who has also won two silver Olympic medals on the track, begins his 2025 road season at the Muscat Classic in Oman on Thursday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n