CCC director says team have made an offer to Geraint Thomas after merger with BMC

CCC Sprandi Polkowice sports director Piotr Wadecki says the new CCC WorldTour team have made a contract offer to 2018 Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas for 2019.

CCC will merge with BMC Racing for 2019, with the Polish shoe company to become the lead sponsor. BMC pulled out of sponsoring the team and has moved its bike partnership to Dimension Data for next year. It was announced during the Tour de France that Polish Pro Continental squad CCC would combine with the American team so save it's WorldTour spot.

Since then, the team has signed up Greg Van Avermaet to be their leader in the Classics, adding Guillaume Van Keirsbulck to the squad as well this week.

In an interview with website Przeglad Sportowy at the Tour of Poland, Wadecki said the team have extended an offer to Thomas to join the team for next year, with the Welshman stating he was open to offers with a new Team Sky contract still up in the air.

"I can confirm, we have made an offer to him and we are waiting for a reply. I think that this will be explained during the Tour de Pologne," Wadecki said.

"We already have one of the best in the world for Classic races, that is Greg Van Avermaet, but our sponsor has the ambition to compete in the general classification at Grand Tours. Geraint's contract ends with Sky [at the end of 2018], and his position as the team leader is not certain.

"He won the Tour de France, but will he be number one? There's Chris Froome who will want to win. With us, Geraint would already know in January that his goal is the Tour de France and we would definitely focus on him."

Thomas has made no indication of his plans in regards to a new contract, but Sky boss Dave Brailsford said after the Tour de France that he considered the best place for the 32-year-old to continue would be Team Sky and was confident of re-signing him.

Wadecki also said that he would like to sign Sky's Polish rider Lukasz Wisniowski and Polish-born Italian sprinter Jakub Mareczko from Wilier Triestina-Selle Italia.

He also said that the new team would be registered in Poland, moving the WorldTour license from its current American registration, with a team base in Belgium.