After four years in Australia, Pieter Weening is back in his Dutch home country. Some will regard his move to Roompot as a step back but he made it deliberately. "In the Tour de France last year, things didn’t go well for me. Then I decided that it was better to leave Orica-Green Edge,” he tells cyclingonline.nl.

The news that Michael Boogerd will no longer be team leader has hit Weening hard: "It is a great pity that he cannot be with the team in the coming years. I spent some time talking to him before I put my signature on a contract with Roompot. Those conversations were very pleasant. It is frustrating that Boogerd is no longer there for the time being.”

Yet the 34-year old rider convinced that the team has great potential.

"The team is bursting with talent. My role is to guide those young boys during the races and to familiarize them with the pro peloton. The perception of this team is obviously very different from Orica-GreenEDGE. In every, we had at least one clear leader. Roompot is different. The important thing is that the youthful talent can then be developed. I hope to be able to contribute.”

It was a well-considered decision to leave the Australian WorldTour formation.

"I did not have to leave Orica. I could stay but wanted to do something else. Roompot was the first and only team with which I have spoken. If we had not agreed, I would have stayed at Orica."

The talks with Roompot Orange Peloton were immediately positive for both parties. It did not take long before Weening had put his signature on a one-year contract.

"It's very conscious that is is a one-year commitment. Not because I want to quit after this year, because I have not thought about that. It was best for both parties to sign a short contract and then see what we will do after one year. Moreover, the sponsorship contract with Roompot was only for one year at that time."

Meanwhile, the winter season has shown that there is an intention to commit more to cycling. Talks regarding a new sponsorship contract will start in March and Roompot plans to renew the contract with the cycling team.

Weening is ambitious for the coming season. He will start at the Tour of Valencia and then go to the Tour of Oman. 

"My first big goals are the classics in April. Especially in the Amstel Gold Race, I want to obtain a good result. Liège-Bastogne-Liège also suits me, Flèche Wallonne much less. I miss explosiveness."

Weening hopes to prepare like he has done in recent year”.

“I will not ride in Catalonia, but hopefully in the Basque Country. Roompot depends on wildcards, so it remains to be seen.”
 

The Dutch team is targeting a wild card for the Giro which will start in Apeldoorn on May 6.

"That would be nice with the first stages in our homw country. Behind the scenes we are working hard to make it happen. It will also create brand awareness in Italy."

Weening won stages in the Italian race in 2011 and in 2014 and with Orica-GreenEDGE he has two wins in team time trials in 2014 and 2015. Weening several has also had several pink jerseys. Those results should help to get access to the Giro. It would be the first grand tour for the team.

"The public cannot expect us to be in the top of the general classification or in the top 10 in every stage. As attackers we can definitely show beautiful things, why not? Marc de Maar, Johnny Hoogerland, Maurits Lammertink and I are riders that climb well. In that sense, Roompot deserves a Giro wildcard, but we realize that it is very difficult to get.”
 

Weening is clearly excited to get started with his new employer.

"I immediately realized that this is a good choice for me. It was good to start to ride somewhere else. So I can keep myself sharp and motivated. I will no longer rider to be 10th in the Tour of Mallorca but I still have goals. I no longer want to go for GC in a grand tour. I always have one or two bad days. In one-week races, I will still always try to hang on and if that fails, I will go for a stage victory."

In 2013, Weening won the Tour of Poland.

The first gathering of the team was during the team presentation at the Six Days of Rotterdam. 

"In December there was a team meeting, but at that time I was in Curaçao and thus could not be there. I know many guys already, but it's fun just to see everybody at a team presentation. The team has a lot of new names compared to last season so everything has to get adapted. The atmosphere is already good. I have a good feeling about this group and am really looking forward to next season.”