Juan Ayuso blames Mauro Gianetti's 'intolerant' attitude for UAE exit

"People don't know that I had a contract extension proposal until 2030, starting in January 2025," Ayuso told MARCA in Kigali. "The funny thing is that at the beginning of the year, there was a possibility of reaching an agreement, but without going into details, Mauro's [Gianetti] 'intolerant' attitude prevented it once again."

Ayuso described the deteriorating relationship with the team management that led to his departure, rather than a single flashpoint.

"These decisions don't happen overnight. I think it was a feeling that was felt race after race," he explained. "The important thing for me was that internally, there wasn't good coordination. Although I understand how difficult it is in a team where you have so many commitments to so many good riders.

“It went wrong when Gianetti realised there was no way, no matter how much he wanted, to keep me. From then on, his attitude changed.” 

The Spanish rider also addressed the unexpected announcement of his departure from the team during the first rest day of the Vuelta a España, a race where he claimed two stage wins.

"We had both agreed to announce it after La Vuelta; in fact, they asked us to. That Monday, I didn't know anything. At 6:30pm, my agent, [Giovanni] Lombardi, called me: he was coming to the hotel because Mauro had called him, and the statement was due to be released on time."

Ayuso faced plenty of criticism for his role as a teammate throughout the Spanish Grand Tour, with João Almeida locked in a duel with Jonas Vingegaard for the red jersey, but the Portuguese rider was often left isolated. 

However, Ayuso insisted that his relationship with his teammates has remained positive throughout his time at the team, including that with Almeida, though the same couldn’t be said for some of the management staff in the eyes of the Spaniard.

“The atmosphere with my teammates was very good. The problem was always more with the team management,” said Ayuso. “There was controversy and they wanted to use it as a weapon to damage my image, to make it seem like they were the ones who didn't want me on the team and to make themselves look good.”

Ayuso maintained that he holds a good relationship with sports director Joxean Matxin despite the situation, stating: “He understands my decision, respects me, and has helped me leave the team. I'm grateful for that.”

With his move to Lidl-Trek on a five-year contract now sealed, Ayuso admitted that he wanted to bury the hatchet and remember the good times with his current team. “Now I'm going to a new team, new hope. I want to cherish the good memories of this team,” said Ayuso.

In Rwanda, Ayuso is a strong contender for a medal with the difficult Worlds parcours, and he was asked to expand on his recent comments that he "wasn’t aiming for silver," and if that ambition could affect him later.

“What I meant by not aiming for silver is that I'm not going out with a plan to finish second. If I finish second or third, that's also a great result, but you have to race to win. Then the result will tell. I don't want to go out thinking about getting on the podium; I'm going out to win, and then we'll see what happens,” explained Ayuso.