Christoph Sauser was the last rider to chase the World Cup podium for Cannondale with Shimano XTR components in 2003. The team then switched to Sram components. One could almost call this step historic, that the "Cannondale Factory Racing XC Team" switched back to Shimano 15 years later. The partnership between Cannondale and Shimano starts now and will continue with its riders, Manuel Fumic (GER), Henrique Avancini (BRA), Maxime Marotte (FRA) and the sisters Helen and Hannah Grobert (GER) until the 2020 Olympics.

From this year onwards, the Cannondale team's F-Si hardtails and Scalpel-Si fullys will be equipped with XTR drivetrains. This also includes the XTR Hollowtech II Race crankset made from hollow-forged, anodized aluminium and titanium chainrings. The combination is completed by the SIL-TEC-coated HG-901 chain and the Shimano "XTR SHADOW RD+" rear derailleur. Of course, the brakes also come from Shimano. The team relies on the XTR M9000 RACE stoppers.

Team manager Daniel Hespeler points out that the switch to Shimano was a big goal for him and will ride into the Olympic qualification phase: "We have built a fantastically talented squad of brave, aggressive and open-minded cross-country riders who are among the best in the world. We have aligned the structure of the team for ultimate performance for the next Olympic cycle and made some fundamental changes to the way the team works. Signing with Shimano was the missing piece in the puzzle and from the riders to the mechanics, we are all excited to be working with XTR and Shimano up to and through 2020."

The first major race for the Cannondale Factory Racing Team on Shimano will be the start of the UCI World Cup, which begins on March 10, 2018 in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Immediately afterwards, the team will focus on winning the ABSA Cape Epic, which starts just over a week later.

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