BURY cycling star Simon Yates has signed a new two-year deal to remain with Mitchelton-Scott until the end of the 2022 season.

The 2018 Vuelta a Espana champion and two-time Tour de France stage winner had been linked with a move away from the team after a spell of uncertainty over their long-term future in the sport following the collapse of a takeover deal involving the Manuela Fundacion earlier this summer.

But with a new commitment in place from owner Gerry Ryan, the 28-year-old Yates has finalised a new two-year deal to stay with the team he joined alongside his twin brother Adam when they turned professional in 2014.

The brothers signed new two-year deals together in 2018, but Wednesday’s announcement included no news on Adam, who has been strongly linked to Team Ineos.

Mitchelton-Scott said that securing the future of Simon, who was their first Grand Tour winner when he claimed overall success in Spain two years ago, was their priority.

“The journey with the team has been great so far, I have grown and matured as a person and as a rider,” Yates said.

“We’ve had a lot of success and a lot of failures along the way, but I’m looking forward to continuing the journey together and looking for more success as always.

“We have had a lot of success together, and I just want to continue that going forward, mainly at the Grand Tours.

"We won our first Grand Tour two years ago and I truly believe we can do it again so we will keep working hard so we can take another one.”

Yates, who has won stages in all three Grand Tours with the team, plans to target October’s Giro d’Italia this season, with his brother Adam going to the Tour de France in search of stage wins.

Owner Ryan said: "We’re extremely happy to have Simon continue with us into the future. It’s been a relationship that has been built over a long period of time and one we believe still has great potential for even greater success in the years to come.

“Simon has provided some of our organisation’s proudest moments, including our first Grand Tour victory, and we’re confident that together we have many more highlights to achieve.”