Juan Ayuso has once again responded to his departure from UAE Team Emirates. The Spaniard lashes out at his team's management in an interview with Daniel Benson. "My teammates were not really the problem, it was the management," he makes clear.
The 23-year-old Ayuso says he noticed early on that there was 'no chemistry' with the team's management. "Every time I brought up anything with the team, the answer was 'no.' Even after the 2023 Vuelta. At the same time, I always felt that the option to leave the team was never on the table. So I tried to make the best of it, but at some point, the frustrations pile up."
The Spaniard then gives some examples. "When mistakes were made, they were never addressed. That drained so much energy from me. It’s not enjoyable having to fight against teammates, being more concerned about what goes on in your team bus than outside of it. And the management never clearly defined the riders’ roles. The problem really lay with management."
"From January 2024, it got really aggressive," Ayuso continues. "At that point, I had a contract extension offer on the table until 2030. My biggest concern during those negotiations was that famous €100 million buyout clause in my contract. If that were removed for a proportional buyout fee, I would have been willing to extend. From that moment, the threats began. They said that if I didn’t renew, the team would see what kind of race program I would run. Then I thought: enough is enough."
"Over the past few months, the team has tried to portray me in a very negative light," concludes the rider who will race for Lidl-Trek from 2026. "I was cast as the villain in the story. That bothers me the most, but I’m sure that from 2026 onward, I can show who I really am at a new team."
Juan Ayuso Pesquera| Year | Team |
|---|---|
| 2030 | |
| 2029 | |
| 2028 | |
| 2027 | |
| 2026 |
