Bardiani manager accuses rival ProTeams of race manipulation and threatens legal action over Grand Tour exclusion

Bruno Reverberi has escalated his dispute with the UCI, accusing rival teams of manipulating races to damage Bardiani CSF 7 Saber's chances of securing a place at the 2027 Giro d'Italia.

The veteran Italian team manager, whose squad finished 31st in the 2026 UCI ranking, made the explosive allegations during an interview with Tuttobiciweb's Bla Bla Bike podcast, revealing that he has already reported his concerns to cycling's governing body.

His comments follow an earlier warning that Bardiani could close within two years, with Reverberi blaming the UCI points system for threatening the future of smaller professional teams.

Now, however, his criticism has taken a more serious turn.

"They deliberately rigged races to damage us, and nobody says anything," Reverberi alleged.

Reverberi's allegations centre on races in Panama, where Euskaltel-Euskadi collected valuable ranking points during the final weeks of the season.

The controversy had already emerged following comments by Euskaltel rider Axel van der Tuuk, who initially suggested that Solution Tech NIPPO Rali had played a role in securing his team's participation in the Gran Prix Chiriquí through connections with the organisers via its Panamanian bicycle sponsor.

Van der Tuuk also implied that the team had deliberately kept Italian rivals out of the race amid the battle for Giro d'Italia invitations. However, he subsequently withdrew his remarks, clarifying in a statement published by Het Nieuwsblad that they had been intended purely as "ironic and humorous" comments and were not based on actual facts.

Solution Tech general manager Serge Parsani rejected the original allegations.

"We are not the organisers. Teams race wherever they want," he told SpazioCiclismo, adding: "What right would we have to prevent another team from participating?"

Reverberi, however, believes the circumstances were deliberately engineered.

He claimed MBH Bank had initially been invited before being told not to travel because of a recent earthquake.

"They had already invited MBH Bank, and then they told them not to go because there were problems with the earthquake," he said.

"If you organise a race and your rival doesn't invite you, what can you do?" he asked.

Reverberi also alleged that Solution Tech had effectively allowed Euskaltel to dominate the race.

"Citracca's team [Solution Tech NIPPO Rali] practically didn't even race. They let Euskaltel do their thing because they had an interest in pushing us out to free up another place for themselves at the Giro."

His allegations of deliberate race manipulation remain unproven.

The Bardiani manager says he has already reported the Panama controversy to the UCI.

"We reported what happened to the UCI," he explained.

He also revealed that he previously sent a registered letter challenging the ranking regulations and warning of possible legal action. However by applying for a UCI licence, the Bardiani team accepts to follow all UCI regulations.

"I wrote a registered letter saying I would appeal to CAS because it's unfair," Reverberi said.

The UCI apparently never responded.

"They didn't even reply. A registered letter, and they didn't even reply," he said.

Reverberi named CAS and the International Olympic Committee as potential next steps, although no formal proceedings were confirmed during the interview.

With Bardiani's Giro future in jeopardy, he insists the fight is far from over and believes Bardiani will be invited to the 2027 Giro. 

"We'll see how it ends, because I'm not letting this go," he said.