Team MagnusMaximusCoffee.com becomes Team Sprocket for 2010

We've got a lot of love here at road.cc for Magnus Backstedt, and for his excellent coffee. Backstedt's Swedish development team, MagnusMaximusCoffee.com, featured some upcoming UK talent and made a great deal of fans the World over with their lary Viking jersey in 2009. The Swedish registered team are back in 2010 with a new name, but with the same spirit and an even more international squad.

“When I retired I wanted to create something good for riders who are outside of the fringes of the traditional cycling countries. Scandinavian riders are very much in demand now, you only have to look at Team Sky for confirmation of that.” Backstedt said of the inspiration behind the team.

“I want to take everything I learned in 13 years as a professional rider and pass it onto these young guys. Our mission is to ride the Tour de France by 2015, the riders we have now should all be the right age by then", he continued.

Manager Marty McCrossan added, “We love our cartoon Viking and it will always be there in some form. Our coffee company becomes a sponsor along with BIG MAGGYS which is a new coffee shop-bike shop concept the first of which we roll out on Jersey in March 2010.” Said McCrossan.

After leaving the GB Academy in the summer of 2009 Russell Hampton took up the offer the join the Swedish team for the back end of the season.

“Russell has a wealth of experience and is a special talent. His uniqueness maybe wasn’t embraced on the GB Academy, but that is something we celebrate here and we see Russell very much as a leader figure within the team” Backstedt said of the Brit.

European junior time trial champion Joe Perrett leaps from Junior ranks to pro, he is another rider that fits the mould of the Sprocket team perfectly.

“Joe is one of the most exciting young talents in the World. He only knows one style of racing, 100% all of the time, maybe something he has picked up from Maggy”, McCrossan said of the youngster.

Jack Anderson from Brisbaine adds some more international flavour to the team. The 2009 Oceana U23 Time trial champion represented his country at the Mendrisio World Championships and will spend the European winter racing in Australia before making the leap to the UK base for the season.

Back from the Magnus Maximus team of 2009 are Swedish national time trial champion Alex Wetterhall, Niklas Gustavsson, Filip Rudenstam and Freddy Johansson. They will be joined by an exciting and energetic young Swede in Richard Larsen.

For bikes, Sprocket have switched from Viner to Nishiki - the Japanese brand from the 1970s and 1980s now a Swedish-based group of European distributors and the bikes are being sourced from Taiwan. The Team Carbon bike that the Sprocket team will be using features a mix of Ultegra 6700 and Dura Ace 7900 running gear, and American Classic will be supplying wheels and finishing kit.

For more information head over to www.teamsprocketprocycling.com

Full Team Roster 2010:
Jack Anderson (Aus)
Russell Hampton (GBR)
Joe Perrett (GBR)
Niklas Gustavsson (SWE)
Freddy Johansson (SWE)
Richard Larsen (SWE)
Filip Rudenstam (SWE)
Alex Wetterhall (SWE)