Lorrenzo Manzin (TotalEnergies) said cycling's economic situation is "très compliquée" and warned the sport cannot afford to keep losing teams.
Speaking to Cyclism'Actu before stage 1 of the 4 Jours de Dunkerque on 20 May, the 31-year-old sprinter connected the announced closure of St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93's men's team to a broader pattern of sponsor withdrawals, one that touches his own squad directly: TotalEnergies' title partnership expires at the end of this season.
"It's true that it's starting to add up, after Arkéa last year," Manzin said. "Saint Michel has been in the cycling world for a very long time. It's quite sad. I'm thinking of the riders who are there, I know a few of them. It's always sad to lose teams, but it's true that the economic climate has been very complicated for several years. We have to stick together and hope there are as few shutdowns as possible."
St Michel's men's team bows out after 32 years
St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 confirmed on 12 May that its men's Continental team will cease operations at the end of the 2026 season. The squad first reached professional status in 1994, competed in five editions of the Tour de France and won a stage along the way. Its closure ends a 32-year run in the men's professional peloton.
The club will continue. From 2027, it will concentrate its professional resources on a single team: the women's squad, registered this season as a UCI Women's ProTeam. Stephan Gaudry, the club's CEO, said the shift would provide "additional resources, increased energy and clear ambitions" for the women's programme, while the amateur structure would be reorganised around development and education.
The club has framed it as a pivot, but for riders, it still means another men's team gone from the French racing calendar.
TotalEnergies' future beyond 2026
Manzin's comments have added weight because his own team faces a sponsorship transition. TotalEnergies confirmed in September 2025 that its partnership with SA Vendée Cyclisme, the entity behind Team TotalEnergies, would end at the close of the 2026 season by mutual agreement. The energy company has been the squad's title sponsor since 2019, following on from its earlier backing under the Direct Energie name from 2016. The partnership has spanned more than 130 victories across seven full seasons.
Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, said last September that the company would "stand by Jean-René Bernaudeau's team" through 2026 and intended to "engage discussions for 2027 after the Tour de France." Bernaudeau, the team's long-serving general manager, said he was "already looking ahead to 2027" and "determined to keep the team going."
Those discussions have yet to produce a public outcome. The Tour de France begins on 4 July, putting the timeline for clarity on the team's future just weeks away.
For now, Manzin was focused on his immediate job in Dunkerque, riding in support of teammate Jason Tesson on the race's opening stage. "Today, I'm here for Jason and the collective," he said. "A helper's role."
The broader question he raised, about how many more teams the sport can lose before the damage compounds, remains open.
Cover image credit: Zac Williams/SWpix.com
