Next year Sergio Pardilla will be one of the leader the Caja Rural-Seguros RGA team. The Spaniard joins the team after his experience at MTN-Qhubeka which he describes as "two wonderful years", and a Movistar. At 30 years, he welcomes the change, is "thrilled and satisfied" to return to "a home team" and plans to "change his mind" to go for stage wins in the future.

Pardilla will be wearing the black MTN-Qhubeka jersey before he makes the switch to the green Caja Rural jersey on January 1. It will be his tenth year in the professional ranks after he started his career at the Burgos team in 2006.

"I start with a lot of enthusiasm," he told Biciciclismo at the first team gathering. "I am excited and eager to start a new season with new colors. And to be able to wear a race number in these times is important. I go back to Spain, my home, and this is something to focus on when choosing a new team. In a foreign team, you spend many days by travelling between races.

"This is a great satisfaction because it is a home team. In Spain we have only had two teams for some years (Movistar and Caja Rural, ed.) so it is a great choice. Otherwise, you have to be riding abroad where the options are not the best. Obviously, I want to be in a closer team and with riders that I know. It think it is a competitive team with a big and exceptional calendar. I like their way of racing. There are opportunities to both shine and work for others. We are all one and we must work for the same purpose."

On paper, Pardilla will be one of the leaders of the team. In the past, he has mostly been focused on GCs in stage races but he may change his racing strategy.

"We will have races that suit me and where I will be a leader," he said. "I've always liked to go for GC in stage races. I may have to change that mentality to be more aggressive and look for stage wins. We' sse how we prepare everyhing and try to find the best solution together. We have the Vuelta a Espana which is the big goal, the best and most important race for the team. I have plenty of time to make a good start to the season and then prepare for the Vuelta.

"Maybe I am more interested in winning a stage than finishing in the top 10. In those races, it is difficult to get an overall victory as the bst are at a level that is nearly impossible to reach. If you don't go for GC, you may have more freedom to join breaks and save strength for specific days. It depends on the situation and the physical condition but perhaps I have to target stage wins instead of finishing 8th overall. In any case, it will always be in the mountains. I am a very light rider and it is where I have to look for opportunities because I am not very strong on the flats."

Despite leaving MTN-Qhubeka, Pardilla is full of praise of his former emploers.

"It was always positive," he said. "It has been two wonderful years. I was very comfortable and they have treated me very well. It was a unique experience, perhaps the best I've experienced so far as a cyclist. Not only have I got to know a country, I now know an entire continent and riders with many ideologies. They have taught me to be a better person in many ways. I have heard personal stories that have touched me. I can only describe these two years with good words. Athletically, they have also been good. In the end it was more like a European team, based in Italy, with a European calendar. Maybe the riding style and mindset were different. We had many young riders who needed to learn. We had a pretty decent schedule, with the Vuelta a Espana, Tirreno-Adriatico, Switzerland and some classics."

Despite the positive atmosphere, the collaboration ended on a bad note.

"No, it was not the best," he said. "I don't know why but since May there was no communication with the staff. I really do not knoe why. The relationship with the teammates and management was more than good. However, there was a radical change and the treatment I got was not the most professional, neither for me nor for my teammates."