Oleg Tinkov explained many times he was disappointed with Peter Sagan’s performance. He would like to cut his salary if he could find a legal way to do it. With those claims, the rumor has it that the Slovakian rider will leave the team before the end of his contract. Giovanni Lombardi, his agent, squashed those speculations according to Tuttobiciweb.

"Peter is a rider of great interest to the market, I know this and can only welcome it, but one thing is certain: Peter has a contract that expires at the end of 2017 and we wants to absolutely respect this agreement until the end. Does it look like he is suffering at the Tour de Suisse, not supported by a team that does not believe in him? ... Believe me, there were many who wanted Sagan, but Oleg Tinkov was the fastest to sign him. Unless they have good reason, Peter will not leave."

Given that several big names whose contracts end this year at Etixx-Quick Step (Tom Boonen, Mark Cavendish, Michal Kwiatkowski), Patrick Lefevere would like to sign Peter Sagan.