Eddy Merckx bikes are set to return to WorldTour as the brand looks set to replace Factor as AG2R La Mondiale’s bike provider in 2019.
The Belgian company previously sponsored Quick-Step in the 2010 and 2011 seasons, before Specialized took over the supply for the squad ahead of the 2012 season.
Rumours say that Factor ended the two-year agreement with AG2R La Mondiale as it was not conducive to its ‘high-end profile’.
After founding the brand in 1980, Merckx sold his majority share in the company in 2008 after he learned that his son Axel did not want to take it on.
The company gradually became less profitable until 2016, when a new buyer gave it a much-needed injection of capital, yet even that wasn’t enough to the brand’s fortunes.
Eddy Merckx Cycles was saved by Ridley in 2017 and was brought underneath the Belgian Cycling Factory banner, which also owns the rights to Forza saddles.
