While Stéphane Heulot replaced Jean-René Bernaudeau as manager of TotalEnergies, Jérôme Pineau was blunt on the subject and strongly criticized this choice.
After a sometimes lively end to the 2025 season behind the scenes within certain cycling teams, certain strong choices do not pass. Indeed, while Jean-René Bernaudeau recently closed a 25-year-long chapter and left his place as manager of TotalEnergies to Stéphane Heulot, Jérôme Pineau did not miss the opportunity to strongly criticize this choice during an episode of the “Grand Plateau” podcast on CMR.
“He (Jean-René Bernaudeau) hands over to a guy who failed his teams more than he made them succeed. I crashed one (B&B Hotels, in 2022), I take full responsibility for it… But we all know in the industry that he’s not the most reliable of guys”initially launched the former Norman puncher about the one who was at Lotto before (the team has just merged with Intermarché).
Pineau: “What is the message we are sending here? »
“He comes with one thing, I hope, a partner in his pocket. On the other hand, in terms of preparation, values, overall message, it has nothing to do with it. He never raced on this team, never was around this team. What is the message we are sending here? In this team there have been very brilliant people, much more brilliant than Mr. Heulot”Pineau subsequently added about Bernaudeau’s successor at TotalEnergies.
“This team is unique. We have a philosophy, we veterans of Vendée, which he (Jean-René Bernaudeau) flouted by making this choice. I don’t know what Heulot is capable of, I don’t know if this choice will pay off, but let me strongly doubt it.”then continued the former boss of B&B Hotels-KTM, a team he created in 2018 and which had to stop in 2022.
