Four months after he last raced in the Giro dell’Emilia, Damiano Cunego will return to competition in the upcoming Challenge Mallorca races, which begin on February 3rd with the Trofeo Palma.
“The season began very early for the team, but I preferred to postpone the first race in order to plan a longer program of training,” the Italian explained. “Following Michele Bartoli's instruction, I performed very good training, so I'm ready to again taste the feelings of being in the bunch.”
Cunego had a solid rather than spectacular 2012 season, with a stage in the Giro del Trentino being his only win. He was second overall in that race plus in the Gran Premio di Lugano, fourth in the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and sixth overall in both the Vulta a Catalunya and the Giro d’Italia.
He will hope for more victories this year, with the world championships in Florence likely to be a major target.
Cunego will join eleven Lampre Merida team-mates in the Majorcan races, with Matteo Bono, Mattia Cattaneo, Davide Cimolai, Adriano Malori, Przemyslaw Niemiec, Andrea Palini, Alessandro Petacchi, Filippo Pozzato, Diego Ulissi, Davide Viganò and Luca Wackermann also set to represent the Italian squad.
The Challenge Mallorca series is comprised of four one-day events, meaning that riders can dip in and out as they wish. The Trofeo Palma begins things on Sunday, and is then followed by the Trofeo Campos Santanyì Ses Salines, the Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana and the Trofeo Playa de Muro.