Australian Pro-Continental team Drapac have announced the additions of Nathan Earle and Gavin Mannion for the 2016 season. The duo follow Jens Mouris from Orica-GreenEdge and Jason Lowndes and joining the team from next season.
Earle has spent the last two seasons in the WorldTour with Team Sky largely riding in a supporting role, which included helping Bradley Wiggins to overall success at the 2014 Tour of California. The 27-year-old rode the full Ardennes classics campaign last season while 2015 saw the Tasmanian largely riding 2.1 and 2.HC stage races. Earle said he is looking forward to taking more of his own opportunities next season with Drapac.
"I am excited to get 2016 underway with Drapac Cycling, a team I have always followed with interest," Earle said. "It will be a great team environment for me with a good core group of guys and some familiar faces, which I believe will only benefit my performance. Being a Tasmanian, it is great to be back on home soil, to be riding for an Australian team and still have the opportunity to race around the world."
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Sport director Tom Southam believes Earle can return to kind of form next season with Drapac that saw him win stages at the Tours of Taiwan and Japan.
"It's great to have Nathan Earle on board, I think that he has masses of untapped potential and he seems as motivated as a neo, even after a couple of years in Europe. I believe we can give him opportunities in some top quality racing in 2016, and we will see him rise to the challenge," Southam said.
Mannion, who rode with Garmin-Sharp as a stagiaire in 2014, joins the team from Jelly Belly-Maxxis after a consistent season of GC results on the North American circuit that included fourth overall at the 2.HC USA Pro Challenge in August. Southam explained Drapac have been monitoring the progress of the 24-year-old and believe he continues to develop his skills with his new team.
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