Two of Spanish cycling's most successful riders have weighed in on the controversy surrounding compatriot Juan Ayuso and the recent announcement that he will break his contract and leave UAE Team Emirates-XRG at the end of 2025.
Confirmation that the 22-year-old would depart the WorldTour's top team and end his contract early arrived on Monday evening during La Vuelta a España's first rest day. The timing upset Ayuso and led to him describing the situation on the team as "like a dictatorship" when speaking to local press at the start of stage 10 of the Vuelta on Tuesday.
"We'd made an agreement that it would come out after the Vuelta was over," Ayuso said, "so it wouldn't affect things in the team at all on a sporting level during the race and not to affect any of the riders.
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"The fact that it's come out during the rest day is something that you'll have to ask them [management] about, why they did it so suddenly and without any advance warning.
"I think that it's clear why they've done it, to try and harm my image again."
This response by Ayuso reignited the flames of the saga that has been looming over the UAE squad at La Vuelta for the past week, with two major names from Spanish cycling throwing their thoughts into the mix.
Five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Induráin was present on stage 10 of La Vuelta, as Ayuso's teammate Jay Vine stole the headlines with a second stage win of the Grand Tour from the breakaway, and was naturally asked for his thoughts on the topic by local media.
Speaking to Spanish radio station Cadena COPE, 'Big Mig' defended Ayuso's decision to leave UAE.
"There has been a bit of a stir among the team for some time now, and it seems that in the end, he made the right decision."
Induráin never switched teams throughout his illustrious career during the 1980s and 1990s, but could empathise with the situation Ayuso found himself in.
"If you have team distractions from other things, you end up not performing, and I think he has to look for that, the peace of mind where he believes he's good and [can] fight on the road.
"In the end, when you want to perform at your best, you have to keep everything calm, just pedal to the metal and worry about that."
Meanwhile, two-time Vuelta a España winner Pedro Delgado was less sympathetic to Ayuso's plight, irked by the youngster's decision to speak out against his team ahead of the stage to El Ferial Larra Belagua.
"Honestly, I don't understand anything. Ayuso wanted the freedom to leave and they gave it to him, so I don't understand the statements. If he's gotten what he wants, why talk about it? Today or tomorrow, it doesn't matter. What he was fighting for was to leave," he said on TVE.
"Why add fuel to the fire when it's not necessary?"
After yesterday's stage, Ayuso categorically rejected the idea that the announcement of his departure from the team would result in him quitting La Vuelta early, too, insisting that he will ride in the service of team leader João Almeida.
