Birmingham born Dan Martin has been named in a very strong Etixx Quick Step team for the 2016 Tour De France.
Martin, who rides under an Irish licence, is part of a team which has been built round Marcel Kittel and Patrick Lefevre said: "It wasn't easy to choose nine riders for the Tour de France, because many deserve a spot in the team, but together with the sport directors we selected the strongest collective we have at this moment, capable of achieving the goals we have outlined.
"The team is built around Marcel, and that comes as no surprise, because when you have a guy capable of winning stages in Grand Tours, it's normal to do this. We also have Daniel Martin, another rider who was proved himself at the Tour de France in the past, and who we believe can do even better now, as he has the instinct and the form for this. Tony will also be there, bringing his huge experience and knowledge; in the past weeks, he worked hard to be in top shape for this race and can make something great again, while at the same time being a valuable rider for the strategy we built around Kittel, together with Fabio, Max and Julien, all experienced riders who can support the team in the crucial moments", said Patrick Lefevere, before moving on and talking of the riders who'll make their debut at the Tour de France.
"We are bringing a French rider to the Tour for the first time in years, and everybody knows how talented Julian Alaphilippe is. He won the Tour of California and had a great Dauphiné, fighting hard to book a place in our team for Le Tour. Now the moment has come to give him the opportunity to discover the race and see how far he can go, without putting any pressure on him. The other two riders to make their debut are Iljo and Petr, the engines of the team together with Julien Vermote, all being riders in which we put our trust to get the job done. Bottom line, we are ready for the Tour de France, we are ready for the three intense weeks that lie ahead and we are ready to fight every day and adapt to any kind of scenario, as we have already showed we can do in the past.
Team: Julian Alaphilippe, Iljo Keisse, Marcel Kittel, Dan Martin, Tony Martin, Maximiliano Richeze, Fabio Sabatini, Petr Vakoè and Julien Vermote