Report: Martínez prolongs; Aberasturi an 'option'

Euskaltel veteran Egoi Martínez has agreed to extend his stay with the team, according to reports.

A piece by respected cycling journalist Benito Urraburu of www.que.es carries the news. It's said the 34-year-old former Discovery Channel rider reached an agreement with the team "a few days ago", and thus joins Samuel Sánchez, Mikel Nieve, Igor Antón, Ion and Gorka Izagirre and Mikel Landa in pledging their futures to the orange team.

Former Tour de l'Avenir winner Martínez has been with Euskaltel ever since signing turning professional as a 24-year-old ten years ago, only interspersed by a two-year spell at Lance Armstrong's side at Discovery Channel in 2006 and 2007. 

Interestingly, but perhaps not too surprising, is a statement from incoming General Manager Igor González de Galdeano that 23-year-old Orbea sprinter Jon Aberasturi might join Euskaltel in 2013. Euskaltel have been desperately off the pace in bunch sprint finishes this year after flogging Koldo Fernández off to Garmin last winter, and Galdeano might dip into the Fundación Euskadi's own talent pool to find a solution.

"We need a sprinter", he said to the same newspaper. "Jon Aberasturi is one of the options".

As was reported yesterday, Fundación Euskadi product Aberasturi has accumulated 30 UCI Europe Tour points this year and would as such be a useful signing for a variety of reasons. The speedy Vitoria native has had a somewhat dismal season though, his best result being a second and a fourth place on stages of the Volta ao Alentejo back in March. Aberasturi grabbed his one and only professional win at the same race back in 2011, but has ever since struggled to come up with strong results.

Relive Aberasturi's day of glory in Portugal below (fast forward to 10:15):