Belgian team banking on Sylvain Chavanel, Dries Devenyns and Dario Cataldo in race of the falling leaves
Quick Step will be starting Saturday’s il Lombardia with the three-headed attack of Sylvain Chavanel, Dries Devenyns and Dario Cataldo. The Frenchman, Belgian and Italian all enjoy the kind of challenging course that they are expecting on the day although, with the new race finish in Lecco being used for the first time, nobody knows quite what to expect.
“The race route has changed and, at least on paper, it looks harder than the one from previous years,” explained Quick Step sports director Davide Bramati. “If the race immediately starts out at a fast pace, it will be game on from the very first climb.
“It will be important not to lose any men in the first phase of the race,” he continued, “so we can guarantee support for important athletes like Chavanel, Devenyns and Cataldo until things really start heating up on the ramps of Ghisallo, which has always been the climb that brings out the best in the field.”
Of the three protected riders, Devenyns has the best record in Lombardia, having finished inside the top twenty in the two previous editions. Cataldo has generally been working for others in such races however, while Chavanel has rarely ridden the race in the past.
“Our objective is to ride a good race and try for an important placement in one of the most prestigious races of the season,” Bramati added, “which has already seen our team as major players in the recent past.”
Quick Step team for the Giro di Lombardia:
Marco Bandiera, Dario Cataldo, Sylvain Chavanel, Kevin De Weert, Dries Devenyns, Davide Malacarne, Francesco Reda and Matteo Trentin