Giro d'Italia organizers RCS Sport has revealed that 8 teams have applied for the three remaining wild cards for the 2014 edition of the Italian grand tour. Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox, Caja Rural-RGA, Team Colombia, IAM Cycling, MTN-Qhubeka, Team NetApp-Endura, Team Novo Nordisk and UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team are all trying to earn a berth in the race while the former Vini Fantini team, now known as YelloFluo, is not on the list.

RCS Sport has published a list of 8 teams that are in contention for the three remaining wildcards for their marquee event, the Giro d'Italia. The eight contenders are Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox, Caja Rural-RGA, Team Colombia, IAM Cycling, MTN-Qhubeka, Team NetApp-Endura, Team Novo Nordisk and UnitedHealtcare Pro Cycling Team and the organizers have asked fans to tell which teams they want to see in the race.

The UCI is expected to issue 18 ProTeam licenses and those 18 teams will all have a guaranteed spot in the Italian grand tour. With the race usually inviting 22 teams, this means that there is room for 4 professional continental teams in the race.

Due to an agreement between the Italian cycling federation and RCS, the winner of the Coppa Italia teams classification is automatically qualified for the event and this means that one of the spots is awarded to Androni-Venezuela. This leaves just three open spots for the 8 teams on the list.

Bardiani Valvole CSF-Inox which is mainly a team of young Italian riders, and Colombia both hope to return to the race after having been part of the spectacle in 2013. The former had a highly successful race with a stage win for Enrico Battaglin and the mountains jersey for Stefano Pirazzi while the latter team rode an aggressive race in their first ever grand tour. They will, however, feel the loss of key riders Darwin Atapuma and Johan Esteban Chaves in 2014.

Team NetApp-Endura rode the race in 2012 but missed out on the event in 2013. However, they proved their strength in the Vuelta a Espana where Leopold König won a stage and finished in the top 10 overall. The team is also gunning for a wildcard for the Tour de France and could miss the Italian grand tour as a consequence.

IAM Cycling failed to ride a grand tour in their first year but hope to receive an invitation for a three-week race in 2014. With the signing of Sylvain Chavanel, it is a common perception that the team is all but guaranteed a ride in the Tour de France but is also seeking access to the Giro.

Last year MTN Qhubeka decided not to ask for a wildcard for any of the grand tours but with a first year of professional racing in their legs, the team now hopes to become the first African team to ride a grand tour. Their many young African riders can draw on the experience of Gerald Ciolek, Sergio Pardilla and new signing Linus Gerdemann.

As the only Spanish pro continental team, Caja Rural is almost guaranteed to ride the Vuelta a Espana but is trying to internationalize the project. The team is led by David Arroyo who was 2nd in the Giro in 2010.

The two American teams UnitedHealthCare and Team Novo Nordisk are both seeking an invitation for their first grand tour ever. The former team can draw on the climbing strength of Lucas Euser and several fast sprinters led by former Giro stage winner Robert Förster while the latter would attract attention due to its all-diabetic roster.

The main absentee from the list is the YellowFluo team which rode the race in 2013 under the Vini Fantini name. The team has enjoyed plenty of success in recent years but drew negative publicity due to the doping positives of Mauro Santambrogio and Danilo Di Luca. The reason for their absence hasn't been given.

The Giro organizers usually issue their wildcards in the first part of January.