Javier Barrio praises the ‘imperfect’ UCI Point system
After receiving several suggestions to update the UCI point system, as it has nothing to offer domestiques, UCI World Tour coordinator Javier Barrio defended the system stating that the “WorldTour has revitalized cycling”.
However, he also admitted that the system is not complete and no one’s denying that but the truth is, it has really helped boosting the sport which should be acknowledged.
The issue was first raised by Matt Brammeier earlier this month when the four-time Irish National Champion failed to find a World Tour team in the season ahead, following the lack of World Tour points he earned.
The cyclist was reading through morning newspapers, only to find out about that his services were no longer needed and was denied a contract with Team Omega Pharma-Quick Step.
The 27-year-old joined Team Omega Pharma-Quick Step in 2012 after his former side, Team HTC announced its demise from professional cycling because of lack of finances.
Being a domestique, Brammeier’s main job is to help the team leader which leaves him with a very small window of opportunity to claim his own victories, and no victories means no UCI points.
Irrespective of the effort you put in helping your team through the year, if you do not stand on the podium, you will not be awarded with any points and lack of UCI points can really make it difficult to secure a new team for the new season.
Winner of the 2012 UCI World Tour, Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver shared the same concerns, “The winner shouldn’t finish the season with 600 points, he should finish with 15000,” he told Cyclingnews.
“That way a team worker who gets 300 or 400 will have something to offer, in terms of points, to a squad,” Rodriguez concluded.
While praising the imperfect point system, Barrio cited, “For example, it has played a key role towards reconciliation within cycling”.
“We no longer have the wars that we saw between organizers in 2008 and 2009. We are in a much better place now in 2012 than we were in 2010, just before the WorldTour was launched”.
It is believed that necessary measures will be taken to update the UCI World Tour point system to prevent the domestiques from becoming an endangered species.
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