The 20 year old recruits join South African veteran Greg Minnaar; 3 time World Champion and the only man to have 19 World Cup DH race wins to his name.
Under Minnaar’s mentorship, the young American and Frenchman will have support from some of the most experienced people in the sport.
Steve Peat may have stepped back from World Cup racing, but remains on hand to share two decades of knowledge on areas such as race preparation, line-spotting, and bike set-up.
Wrenching legend Doug Hatfield is now assigned to Luca’s pit corner, while Morzine local PA Roche joins the crew to handle all Loris’ race tech needs. Jason Marsh stays on as Greg’s chief bearing polisher, and team manager Kathy Sessler retains the hardest job at Santa Cruz—keeping this circus on the road, with her unique, home-away-from- home vibe.
Josh Bryceland will not be racing under the Syndicate banner for 2017, but rest assured he’ll continue riding for Santa Cruz around the world as and when the mood takes him. For those brave enough to tackle his northern British accent, Josh explained the motivation behind his change in direction via a personal question and answer session.
“Luca and Loris are two of the most talented young athletes on the World Cup circuit right now,” explains Team Director, Rob Roskopp. “Having them join the Syndicate marks a whole new era for the team.”
“I respect the work done by previous teams to bring Luca and Loris to this point in their careers” continues Roskopp. “It’s only been a few weeks, but they’ve already slotted straight into the Syndicate in a way that feels completely natural and positive. It’s going to be great seeing how they evolve from here, both as racers and individuals.”
The Syndicate’s first UCI World Cup downhill race of the season takes place in Lourdes, France, on April 30. The complete 2017 UCI DH calendar is:
WORLD CUP
#1 April 29-30: Lourdes, France
#2 June 3-4: Fort William, Scotland
#3 June 10-11: Leogang, Austria
#4 July 1-2: Vallnord, Andorra
#5 July 8-9: Lenzerheide, Switzerland
#6 August 5-6: Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada #7 August 26-27: Val di Sole, Italy
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
September 5-10: Cairns, Australia
Greg Minnaar
Height: 6'3"/191cm
Date of Birth: 13th November 1981
Greg first started racing BMX at 4 years of age. He soon moved over to motocross and raced for 11 years before his parents bought a bicycle shop and his path to DH stardom began.
Greg was initially inspired by the rivalry between Nico Vouilloz and Steve Peat. He worked his way up to the Santa Cruz Syndicate team to eventually ride alongside one of those childhood heroes.
Greg's won back-to-back World Championships on the Syndicate, and is widely recognized as one of the smoothest and most consistent DH racers on the circuit.
Greg's personal sponsors include Oneal, Oakley, Kabuto, Oprtix, Five Ten, and Gamut.
Luca Shaw
Hendersonville, North Carolina, USA
Date of Birth: December 25, 1996
Luca's been on two wheels his whole life. He started off riding motocross at the tender age of 4, and got into BMX racing when he turned 8 and raced all across the country as an amateur. When he was 13, he did his first mountain bike race, and it's been all downhill from there!
Loris Vergier
Cagnes sur mer, France
Date of Birth: July 5, 1996
Loris Vergier's been racing bikes since he was 10 years old, and he brings two Junior World Cup titles, a Junior World Championship, and two Elite World Cup podiums with him to the Syndicate—we can't wait to see what he can do.