The Blanco team is soon to become Belkin, after the American technology company reportedly signed on to sponsor the Dutch team for the Tour de France, but team manager Richard Plugge is still searching for a second sponsor to help fill out the budget, and will be looking to hire some American riders, according to AD.nl. One name that came up in particular was that of Peter Stetina.
A resident of Santa Rosa, an hour north of Belkin headquarters in San Francisco, Stetina told Cyclingnews that he hasn't heard from the Blanco management, but was flattered by the reports.
"That's a question for my agents," Stetina said when asked about the news, "that's why I work with them, so I can just focus on being a faster bike rider."
Having just finished the Giro d'Italia for the third straight year, Stetina said he is now only focused on doing his job for his current team, Garmin-Sharp, with an eye on performing well at the Tour of Utah and then either the USA Pro Cycling Challenge or the Vuelta a Espana.
"Next year comes, well, next year and I am a 'step A before step B" kind of guy."
The UCI rules restrict riders from signing contracts with different teams for the coming season to a period between August 1 and December 31 each year. Riders and teams are prohibited from even revealing contract negotiations outside of this transfer window.
Stetina has been with Jonathan Vaughters' organisation since his junior years when he was a part of the TIAA-CREF development squad.
