It's kind of mind blowing to me if he really does move to Norco, given how he was basically given free reign on the new V10 development (and didn't like the HP proto), plus all the other component changes. For someone as picky as him, that's a massive amount of change.
dang! 4 of the same news post within a minute of each other. #teamRumorsSnipers
absolutely nuts greg won't be on syndicate anymore.
I may be alone in this but I see a big silver lining here. Greg moving on from Syndicate means he's still going to race, which of course I love seeing.
It's kind of mind blowing to me if he really does move to Norco, given how he was basically given free reign on the new V10...
It's kind of mind blowing to me if he really does move to Norco, given how he was basically given free reign on the new V10 development (and didn't like the HP proto), plus all the other component changes. For someone as picky as him, that's a massive amount of change.
It would be surprising aswell because thought norco was trying to go for an all Canadian team?
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco team is rs/sram.
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco...
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco team is rs/sram.
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his own sponsor deals like Gwin. Maybe he goes back to O’Neal?
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco...
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco team is rs/sram.
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his...
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his own sponsor deals like Gwin. Maybe he goes back to O’Neal?
sorry, meant FOX suspension, not clothing. also drivetrain/brakes?
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco...
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco team is rs/sram.
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his...
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his own sponsor deals like Gwin. Maybe he goes back to O’Neal?
GM moving to a totally new platform and team could throw someone who's as meticulous as him into chaos. But on the other hand this could be the kind of massive chage that could revitalize him to take a couple more P1s on the way out.
Having pretty mixed feelings abouts all this tbh... But it also raises some questions in my opinion:
1. Will this affect Peatys role at the Syndicate? Looks like he's the only one left from the good old days.
2. Is there any relation to what was happening around Roskopp a year (?) ago?
3. Is this a major marketing fail? Imagine all the exposure the GOAT will drive to a brand on what is maybe his farewell tour. Plus the Syndicate always had these family vibes and people loved it. Loosing GM somehow feels like they loosing a huge part of their heritage and of what they managed to keep of the spirit they once had.
4. We're they planning to release the news by now or were they forced by all the rumors?
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his...
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his own sponsor deals like Gwin. Maybe he goes back to O’Neal?
More importantly, a friend suggested Pon change the name to Santa Cruz Factory now, Syndicate is dead.
The you tube channel moved over to Santa Crus bikes at the start of 2023 so it has looked as though corporate branding had already started once RR was pushed out the door
Having pretty mixed feelings abouts all this tbh... But it also raises some questions in my opinion:
1. Will this affect Peatys role at the Syndicate...
Having pretty mixed feelings abouts all this tbh... But it also raises some questions in my opinion:
1. Will this affect Peatys role at the Syndicate? Looks like he's the only one left from the good old days.
2. Is there any relation to what was happening around Roskopp a year (?) ago?
3. Is this a major marketing fail? Imagine all the exposure the GOAT will drive to a brand on what is maybe his farewell tour. Plus the Syndicate always had these family vibes and people loved it. Loosing GM somehow feels like they loosing a huge part of their heritage and of what they managed to keep of the spirit they once had.
4. We're they planning to release the news by now or were they forced by all the rumors?
I wonder if the reason for Greg leaving is related to Peaty being in charge - the working relationship between Kathy S and Greg was always strong and with Rob going, Greg has looked someone disconnected this year. He has hardly been in the Dialled productions for most of the season, his social media has been more about his life outside of racing where as in the past it was almost the complete opposite.
I question if it is a marketing fail though - while Greg resonates with those of us who have followed DH for a long time, what is his market cut through like compared to the likes of Jackson, Vali or any of the other early to mid 20s riders when it comes to a younger audience - for the average marketeer, young is new, exciting etc and is even proven to appeal more to an older audience who believe that by doing something that is marketed as youthful, they are percieved as youthful too and not the broken middle aged riders many of us refuse to admit we are.
Regarding heritage - if Greg had gracefully retired, I think they would have made an ambassador role for him but his desire to keep racing when there is cheaper new talent to be had at a time when PON is trying to stem losses with job cuts will be more appealling
I wonder if he'll have a similar deal to Brendan at Scott . Attached to the team but still able to bring along his own personal sponsors.
I'd love to know who instigated this . If GM is still serious about getting top results , and I have no doubt he's capable of it , then Norco seems a less than obvious move . Specialized gravity or trek maybe , but I can't see Norco having the resources of those top teams .
I wonder if he'll have a similar deal to Brendan at Scott . Attached to the team but still able to bring along his own personal...
I wonder if he'll have a similar deal to Brendan at Scott . Attached to the team but still able to bring along his own personal sponsors.
I'd love to know who instigated this . If GM is still serious about getting top results , and I have no doubt he's capable of it , then Norco seems a less than obvious move . Specialized gravity or trek maybe , but I can't see Norco having the resources of those top teams .
Speculation is that Greg was supposed to have a big year last year (World Champs Fort Bill) and go out 'on top'. Or at least with a good year under his belt. Santa Cruz hurting like all other brands right now probably planning to have him off the payroll for 2024--which was likely a huge relief. Then his season started going to shit and and it all started piling up. He had tons of bad luck and his season was lack-luster. He has said himself he didn't want to go out like that.
Also, I don't think Greg is getting along the best with Laurie and Jackson could be his child. Rob is gone, Kathy gone. The only one there he can bro-out with is Peaty.
He's always looking for the next edge, a change, etc. He probably realized he was not going to have a team next year, or come back to Santa Cruz with a huge pay cut so he started shopping around mid-season. He wanted a brand he could have a lot of control over (the bike, etc.) and Norco, given their pension for development of the DH bike lately was a good fit. Norco cuts Wallace, Kintner and Bryn to allocate budget to pay for Greg. Big gamble for Norco on some levels, but on others it's a slam dunk. Everyone will be focused on 'the Goat on a new rig' next season. If he does well, the bikes will sell well. If he does bad, it's not a total loss as it could be blamed on the switch to a whole new platform and his age.
Greg was not ready to go out like that (2023 season) and like anyone still wants to get paid. He probably could have stayed at Santa Cruz for a major pay cut but opted to try something new to stoke the fire and get paid well, while doing it. My guess is a 1 year deal with a 2 year option or something like that.
As to him possibly switching to Rockshox/SRAM. My guess is that he's open to it--he's always searching for the 'the best'. SRAM drivetrain is a no-brainer, the new Boxxer is excellent and the new Maven brakes are said to be next level as well. He will have nearly 5 months to adapt. It's not out of the question. Also, in terms of money, Fox is hurting right now (40% off sales, etc.)... Rockshox/SRAM would definitely kick another $100k into Greg's pay to get the Goat to switch to their side for his farewell tour. All of that said, he has enough power to switch Norco to Fox/Shimano.
My speculation is that last year was planned to be Greg's last season.
Based on that and the season Jackson had, Santa Cruz allocated funds to lock Jackson in for a long time. It was stated that Santa Cruz has Jackson locked in for a long term contract and it's clear they view Jackson as their future star.
They didn't budget for a 2024 season for Greg. By the time Greg decided that he didn't want to finish on bad season and wanted to race 2024 the team budget was spent.
With the struggles at PON and all bike companies currently, they weren't willing to come up with the additional funds to keep Greg at a price he was willing to stay for.
Just wild speculation here, but at this point in his career he's probably playing the long game. Switching brands just to avoid a cut in salary doesn't seem like it would move the needle. However, starting your own race team and anchoring it at least the first year would set him up long term. With ESOs push to make the sport more "elite", the established teams could become more valuable.
Officially official:
dang! 4 of the same news post within a minute of each other. #teamRumorsSnipers
absolutely nuts greg won't be on syndicate anymore.
It's kind of mind blowing to me if he really does move to Norco, given how he was basically given free reign on the new V10 development (and didn't like the HP proto), plus all the other component changes. For someone as picky as him, that's a massive amount of change.
Greg’s replacement rumoured to be a junior female rider
I may be alone in this but I see a big silver lining here. Greg moving on from Syndicate means he's still going to race, which of course I love seeing.
Aimi Kenyon did pretty well on an SC for the PB Racing team, could be a step up to get on the factory program.
It would be surprising aswell because thought norco was trying to go for an all Canadian team?
if greg to norco is true, he'd surely stay on FOX suspension, right? new bike and suspension seems like such a massive move, but current norco team is rs/sram.
Maybe the price of SC bikes will come down a bit now
Not serious but you have to imagine his salary was pretty significant.
I thought the Fox deal had less to do with him and more to do with the Syndicate regime change. He always seemed to have his own sponsor deals like Gwin. Maybe he goes back to O’Neal?
sorry, meant FOX suspension, not clothing. also drivetrain/brakes?
GOAT back to Honda Racing Corporation gearboxes?
More importantly, a friend suggested Pon change the name to Santa Cruz Factory now, Syndicate is dead.
Wow. Not sure how I feel about this one.
GM moving to a totally new platform and team could throw someone who's as meticulous as him into chaos. But on the other hand this could be the kind of massive chage that could revitalize him to take a couple more P1s on the way out.
One goat leaves
The next is growing his horns in the same pit tent
Still in shock, can't believe it.
Having pretty mixed feelings abouts all this tbh... But it also raises some questions in my opinion:
1. Will this affect Peatys role at the Syndicate? Looks like he's the only one left from the good old days.
2. Is there any relation to what was happening around Roskopp a year (?) ago?
3. Is this a major marketing fail? Imagine all the exposure the GOAT will drive to a brand on what is maybe his farewell tour. Plus the Syndicate always had these family vibes and people loved it. Loosing GM somehow feels like they loosing a huge part of their heritage and of what they managed to keep of the spirit they once had.
4. We're they planning to release the news by now or were they forced by all the rumors?
The you tube channel moved over to Santa Crus bikes at the start of 2023 so it has looked as though corporate branding had already started once RR was pushed out the door
Is there going to be some cheeky change of team names or something? This seems kind of unreal
I wonder if the reason for Greg leaving is related to Peaty being in charge - the working relationship between Kathy S and Greg was always strong and with Rob going, Greg has looked someone disconnected this year. He has hardly been in the Dialled productions for most of the season, his social media has been more about his life outside of racing where as in the past it was almost the complete opposite.
I question if it is a marketing fail though - while Greg resonates with those of us who have followed DH for a long time, what is his market cut through like compared to the likes of Jackson, Vali or any of the other early to mid 20s riders when it comes to a younger audience - for the average marketeer, young is new, exciting etc and is even proven to appeal more to an older audience who believe that by doing something that is marketed as youthful, they are percieved as youthful too and not the broken middle aged riders many of us refuse to admit we are.
Regarding heritage - if Greg had gracefully retired, I think they would have made an ambassador role for him but his desire to keep racing when there is cheaper new talent to be had at a time when PON is trying to stem losses with job cuts will be more appealling
I wonder if he'll have a similar deal to Brendan at Scott . Attached to the team but still able to bring along his own personal sponsors.
I'd love to know who instigated this . If GM is still serious about getting top results , and I have no doubt he's capable of it , then Norco seems a less than obvious move . Specialized gravity or trek maybe , but I can't see Norco having the resources of those top teams .
imagine next week they say "introducing Santa Cruz factory racing, with our rider Greg Minaar" I will be pissed lol
https://www.bicycleretailer.com/announcements/2023/11/14/norco-adds-key…;
Norco has a new head of brand as of a few weeks ago. A quick search shows she is from South Africa. Would be a hell of a coincidence.
Speculation is that Greg was supposed to have a big year last year (World Champs Fort Bill) and go out 'on top'. Or at least with a good year under his belt. Santa Cruz hurting like all other brands right now probably planning to have him off the payroll for 2024--which was likely a huge relief. Then his season started going to shit and and it all started piling up. He had tons of bad luck and his season was lack-luster. He has said himself he didn't want to go out like that.
Also, I don't think Greg is getting along the best with Laurie and Jackson could be his child. Rob is gone, Kathy gone. The only one there he can bro-out with is Peaty.
He's always looking for the next edge, a change, etc. He probably realized he was not going to have a team next year, or come back to Santa Cruz with a huge pay cut so he started shopping around mid-season. He wanted a brand he could have a lot of control over (the bike, etc.) and Norco, given their pension for development of the DH bike lately was a good fit. Norco cuts Wallace, Kintner and Bryn to allocate budget to pay for Greg. Big gamble for Norco on some levels, but on others it's a slam dunk. Everyone will be focused on 'the Goat on a new rig' next season. If he does well, the bikes will sell well. If he does bad, it's not a total loss as it could be blamed on the switch to a whole new platform and his age.
Greg was not ready to go out like that (2023 season) and like anyone still wants to get paid. He probably could have stayed at Santa Cruz for a major pay cut but opted to try something new to stoke the fire and get paid well, while doing it. My guess is a 1 year deal with a 2 year option or something like that.
As to him possibly switching to Rockshox/SRAM. My guess is that he's open to it--he's always searching for the 'the best'. SRAM drivetrain is a no-brainer, the new Boxxer is excellent and the new Maven brakes are said to be next level as well. He will have nearly 5 months to adapt. It's not out of the question. Also, in terms of money, Fox is hurting right now (40% off sales, etc.)... Rockshox/SRAM would definitely kick another $100k into Greg's pay to get the Goat to switch to their side for his farewell tour. All of that said, he has enough power to switch Norco to Fox/Shimano.
greg to nicolai, because they're the only other company with a bike frame large enough for him
My speculation is that last year was planned to be Greg's last season.
Based on that and the season Jackson had, Santa Cruz allocated funds to lock Jackson in for a long time. It was stated that Santa Cruz has Jackson locked in for a long term contract and it's clear they view Jackson as their future star.
They didn't budget for a 2024 season for Greg. By the time Greg decided that he didn't want to finish on bad season and wanted to race 2024 the team budget was spent.
With the struggles at PON and all bike companies currently, they weren't willing to come up with the additional funds to keep Greg at a price he was willing to stay for.
Greg to Frameworks?
Didn't they say they would have a 3rd rider who has podiumed at World cups?
Referring to Minnaar as a guy who “has podiumed” is like saying Jordan is a guy who “scored some points” in the NBA.
i think they’d word it different if he really was going that way
Unless they were trying to keep it secret. Classic misdirection.
Brilliant
Of course I'm kidding and just talking shit.
Just wild speculation here, but at this point in his career he's probably playing the long game. Switching brands just to avoid a cut in salary doesn't seem like it would move the needle. However, starting your own race team and anchoring it at least the first year would set him up long term. With ESOs push to make the sport more "elite", the established teams could become more valuable.
FMD trolling ???
Phoebe commented saying tony (team manager) had access to the insta. Either he's drunk and leaked something or taking the piss 😂
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