Garate turned down Euskaltel offer

Basque Quick.Step climber/GC rider Juanma Garate todya revealed he turned down an offer from Euskaltel last year. The 31-year-old has been a quality rider for some time now, and I've been one of those singing his praises. I've always wanted to see Juanma don the famous orange jersey but, judging by an interview in today's Noticias de Gipuzkoa, that will probably never happen. "I'm glad I didn't join Euskaltel", he said. "They contacted me for the very first time, ever, this year. They offered me a contract that wasn't anything near the contract I'm on now. I was only offered a one-year deal, while some other Euskaltel riders have got two-year deals. And I was already on a two-year deal with Quick.Step... I understood that they had more confidence and interest in other riders". He also seems to disagree with everything Miguel Madariaga is doing, and saying, so I guess I can wave goodbye to that dream...