Intermarché-Circus-Wanty keeps reinforcing its structure by extending the contract of Frenchman Adrien Petit, one of the most experimented road captains and a central element in the sprint trains and classics team, until the end of 2025.
The 32 year old Frenchman is above all a cobble specialist. With Intermarché-Circus-Wanty, he finished sixth of Paris-Roubaix last year, his best result in eleven participations and third top ten. During the same spring of 2022 he also raced for the victory in the GP de Denain (3rd) and the Antwerp Port Epic (5th).
From his first months with the team of Jean-François Bourlart, his experience was decisive in the collective strength, guiding for example Biniam Girmay through his first Flemish classics and towards a historical victory in Ghent-Wevelgem.
The fast rider launched the sprinters of the team towards victories and podiums all over Europe, including in the Tour de France. Next to leading Alexander Kristoff to third place on the Champs-Elysées, he guided his teammates over the first cobble section in the stage towards Arenberg, named Sector Adrien Petit “Le Bison” in his honor.
The rider from Arras recently came back in competition after a complicated start of 2023 due to bad luck. Following a crash in the Trofeo Alcudia, his first race in January, his shoulder underwent an operation so he was out for several weeks. A couple of days after his return in March, he broke a phalanx during a crash in Dwars door Vlaanderen.
From Tuesday to Sunday, he will participate for the tenth time to the Dunkirk Four Day in his region, six years after his solo win in the final stage to Dunkirk. It was in this coastal city that Gerben Thijssen took his first professional victory last year, after two other podiums earlier that week. The double winner in 2023 will receive the support of his sprint train composed of Julius Johansen and Boy van Poppel, Loïc Vliegen, regional rider Axel Huens and cyclocross specialist Kevin Kuhn.
The selection directed by Dimitri Claeys and Pieter Vanspeybrouck will receive several opportunities for sprinters and will be confronted to the traditional queen stage with eight loops on the Casselberg. New this year is the third stage in form of a time trial of 15.9 kilometer around Saint-Quentin.
« The period of spring classics I experienced with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty in 2022 is undoubtedly the most memorable of my career so far, with especially unforgettable performances in Ghent-Wevelgem and Paris-Roubaix. I'm enjoying myself a lot since my arrival in this big family. What makes the difference is the atmosphere during the moments off the bike, between teammates, staff members or our sponsors. Cohesion is omnipresent and as a rider you can feel the continuous support. That's why I couldn't imagine anything else than extending the adventure. »
« Despite the crashes and injuries which obstructed my start of the season, the sports direction never ceased showing its confidence in my capabilities. The continuous support of the team reinforces my conviction that this is the best environment for me. This enables me to return in a serene way to my normal level, aiming to show good things in the second half of the season. »
« From this Tuesday I'll participate in the Dunkirk Four Day, my first stage race of the season which will play an important role in my preparation. I will reinforce the sprint train of Gerben Thijssen in a region I know well. Julius Johansen and Boy van Poppel already have good automatisms to guide Gerben in the final, so my role will probably consist of positioning the train or jumping in where necessary following the race circumstances. Following the tradition, the race passes on several difficulties in the region, among which some cobble sections in my training region and the Mont Saint Eloi, my favorite climb for intervals, before passing nearly in front of my home in stage four towards Achicourt. »
« I'll then go to the Tour of Norway to guide a young group, a part of my job I appreciate a lot. My absence during the classics enabled me to follow the team in detail from my sofa, admiring the performances of our young talents such as Madis Mihkels. I'm looking forward to accompany him and the other guys in Norway. I also can't wait to be reunited with Biniam Girmay and Mike Teunissen, with who I trained a lot this winter, with the goal to achieve victories in the most prestigious races! »
« One year and a half ago, Adrien Petit quit his comfort zone by joining a foreign team for the first time in his career. Progressively, he became more convinced about our approach which was new to him. Despite his rich experience he managed to make a new step, improving his personal best in Paris-Roubaix with a fantastic sixth place. »
« I'm also proud of his evolution in a leading role. Because of his strong race intelligence and his involvement in de development of young riders we put our trust in him to grow into a captain role. He admittedly had to experience Paris-Roubaix 2023 from his sofa, but he managed to be useful for the team by giving Laurenz Rex advice during a 30 minute phone call the day before the race. This is really meaningful. Adrien has the charisma of a true leader, respected by his teammates. He is a passionated worker with teamspirit. For all these reasons he is an essential element in our team. »
« We really missed him during the spring classics. Not only for his capabilities of achieving results, but also in his role alongside our young talents. I'm looking forward to see him back at the top of his form in our sprint trains and our classics team. Investing in road captains is a priority for Intermarché-Circus-Wanty. On another note, this contract extension was also an excellent opportunity to support Adrien in his way back to his best level. »
« Since his arrival in the beginning of 2022, Adrien Petit immediately found his place in the team, as if he had always been there. His mindset goes perfectly together with our structure, both on and off the bike. His personality is respected by his teammates for his work and devotion, appreciated by the staff for his attitude and by the fans for his accessibility or by our sponsors because they find in him all their values. »
