Gianni Savio's 26-year run with Italian team Androni Giocattoli has nearly come to an end after this year's title sponsor, drone transport startup Drone Hopper, defaulted on its obligations.

The team is no longer on the UCI's pro team application list, and if the team were to continue now, it would be the Continental development team, which will again be aiming for higher positions in the future.

In an interview with OASport.it, Savio said, "The economic situation of the team is currently good, in the sense that we have no problems to finish this season. This is because Marco Bellini (team CFO) and I have found an alternative to make up the three overdue payments by the drone hoppers."

The players and staff were given permission to look for work elsewhere a few months ago.

"We immediately said that in the unlikely event that the riders and staff had another opportunity to sign on the spot, in the unlikely event that we had to make the team, we would discuss it again. No one would be able to say that they lost a job opportunity because of us. We rectified the situation and informed everyone of the situation three months ago."

The team had signed a four-year contract with Drone Hopper, but the company failed to meet its obligations. Savio said, "They are good people," and spoke of his support for the team's quest to enter the World Tour.

"We think our contract with Dronehopper is always valid. We are waiting for their project to take off. Obviously he won't be our main sponsor next year, but we are giving him the opportunity to continue supporting our project," Savio said.

Eventually, Androni Giocattoli's patron, Pino Buda, agreed to save the team this year. The team is now frantically searching for sponsors and contracts in order to meet the UCI's application deadline of November 10.

"We were unprepared for this. 'Finding sponsors was never easy. The economy is not good, pandemics, wars, and rising electricity prices are all factors that keep companies away from sponsors.

"The various negotiations that have been initiated around the world have not yielded concrete results. There are still two options, which the negotiators are considering.

Savio sold the contracts of Italian Andrea Piccoli and Ecuadorian Jefferson Cepeda to EF Education-EasyPost to cover salaries after the drone hopper missed three months of payments.

"It was a matter of choice. We had to choose between selling Piccolo or not paying all the team members their salaries at the end of the month.

"It was a good thing we did, because Piccolo was one of the many riders Savio had selected from the disbanded Gazprom-Rusvelo team and who had scored two podium finishes with the new team in the fall.