In the spring, there seemed to be no cause for concern for Tom Paquot. The 26-year-old Belgian had reached a verbal agreement with his team Intermarché-Wanty to extend his expiring contract, but the merger with Lotto changed everything. The contract was ultimately never signed, and now Paquot even has to look for a new employer.
The rider shares his heartrending story in an interview with La Dernière Heure. "In May, I reached an agreement with the team management to continue," explains the domestique. "But unfortunately, the contract was never sent to me. On July 15th, I realized that it probably wouldn’t happen. I’m not naive: more than forty riders already had contracts until 2026 at that time."
Back against the wall
"I no longer had any illusions then. Since then, I haven’t spoken with the management either. There was no communication at all, which fueled the uncertainty. The question is: would I have done better? Maybe. A merger always takes time, and I believe it should be finalized before 2027. That way people still have time to prepare. Now, everyone has been backed into a corner."
Paquot was not kept informed by the team all this time. "I first heard about the merger plans through the press, just like everyone else. At first, I wasn’t really worried. I thought it would fall through, just like with Quick-Step and Visma | Lease a Bike two years ago. But the merger quickly became concrete. I have to thank the journalists: without them, we would know nothing."
"That may be my mistake"
What makes it even more painful for the Belgian is that he was still in talks with other WorldTour teams in the spring. "But I didn’t go for those. I had confidence in the Intermarché-Wanty project. That may be my mistake, but I can’t undo it now. It’s especially hard for a domestique to find another team. If you look at my results, you might scroll past me, but I have a much broader role."
Tom Paquot - photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
Paquot hopes to find a new team for 2026 in the coming weeks. "With my WorldTour experience, it would be great if I get the chance somewhere to show the real Tom Paquot. I’ve worked a lot for others these past years, but now I really want to show myself and race aggressively."
"If an opportunity arises to continue with the merged team, I would say yes. Being part of the project around Arnaud De Lie, I would love that. It’s still too early to turn the page, but if it turns out I have to stop racing, I will do so without regret."
