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Soudal Quick-Step and its sister team, AG Insurance-Soudal, will switch from Specialized to Merida bikes next season. The agreement runs through 2030, while the men’s team is also set to race under the name Soudal Safety Jogger.
Soudal Quick-Step and AG Insurance-Soudal will switch from Specialized to Merida bicycles next season, ending the men’s team’s association with Specialized after about two decades. The deal is scheduled to run through 2030, and the men’s team is also set to race under the name Soudal Safety Jogger from next year.
The change applies to the men’s WorldTour team and its sister Women’s WorldTour squad. According to the Cycling Weekly report, the teams will use Merida’s Reacto road bike and Time-Warp time-trial bike. The equipment package is listed with Shimano Dura-Ace groupsets, wheelsets and pedals, Continental tyres, Prologo saddles, Sidi shoes and Lazer helmets.
Specialized first partnered with the team, then known as Quickstep-Innergetic, for the 2007 season. Cycling Weekly reports that the relationship continued apart from two seasons when the squad used Eddy Merckx bikes. Its most prominent years together included Classics victories associated with Tom Boonen and Grand Tour sprint successes by Mark Cavendish, Marcel Kittel and Tim Merlier. Remco Evenepoel, who won a Grand Tour while riding for the team, now rides Specialized for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe.
The team said the new equipment followed research and evaluation led by head of technical and development Nicolas Coosemans and performance coach Koen Pelgrim. Its release said products were tested in controlled settings, including a wind tunnel, as well as on the road. The announcement describes the selection process; it does not provide comparative performance figures for the new and former equipment.
A New Equipment Era for Both Squads
The supplier change affects the bikes and associated equipment used by two top-level teams, making it a visible technical shift as well as a commercial partnership change. For riders and performance staff, equipment choices can shape setup, testing and how components work together across road and time-trial events.
Merida’s return to the WorldTour is another consequence of the deal. Cycling Weekly reports that the brand was last represented at that level by Bahrain Victorious and spent one year away. The agreement gives Merida a place on both a men’s and a women’s WorldTour team, while Soudal’s stated goal is to work with technical partners on equipment development. No results from the partnership are available yet, and the announcement does not establish that the switch will improve race performance.
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From Specialized to Merida
The partnership being replaced began in 2007, when Specialized joined the team then called Quickstep-Innergetic. Cycling Weekly describes the relationship as lasting around 20 years, with a two-season interruption involving Eddy Merckx bikes. The team’s announcement marks a change in supplier after a long stretch associated with the Specialized name.
The switch is part of a broader team update: the men’s squad is due to be known as Soudal Safety Jogger from next year, while the women’s team remains identified as AG Insurance-Soudal in the report. The provided material does not explain the commercial terms of the Merida agreement or detail whether every listed equipment supplier will serve both teams in identical ways.
“We have been working on this project for more than one year, because decisions around technical partners have a direct impact on the performance of our riders.”
— Soudal Quick-Step CEO Jurgen Foré, in the team statement
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Performance Gains Still Unproven
The announcement does not disclose financial terms, the precise start date beyond “next season,” or comparative test results showing how the Merida bikes perform against Specialized models. It also does not specify whether the equipment list will be identical for both teams or whether particular components will vary by rider or event.
The claimed intention to find improvements is the team’s stated rationale, not evidence of a confirmed performance benefit. Any effect on race results will only become assessable after the teams begin competing with the new equipment.
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Teams Prepare for Next Season
The teams are expected to begin using Merida bikes next season under an agreement running through 2030. Their riders and staff will need to put the equipment package through further preparation and competition use, while the men’s team adopts its announced Soudal Safety Jogger name.
The next useful details will be the teams’ final equipment specifications and the first race appearances on the new bikes. Until then, the confirmed development is the supplier switch and the stated partnership term; performance outcomes and the agreement’s commercial details remain undisclosed.
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Key Questions
Which teams are switching to Merida bikes?
Soudal Quick-Step and its sister team, AG Insurance-Soudal, are making the switch from Specialized to Merida.
When will the teams start using Merida bikes?
The switch is due to begin next season. The source report does not give a specific calendar date for the first race on the new bikes.
How long does the Merida deal run?
The reported agreement runs through 2030. Financial terms were not provided.
Which Merida models are named?
The teams are set to use the Reacto road bike and Time-Warp time-trial bike, according to the report.
Has the team shown that the new bikes will improve results?
No comparative performance results were included in the announcement. The team described its testing and its aim of finding improvements, but any effect on racing remains unconfirmed.
Source: rss
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