Spanish national coach José Luis de Santos doesn’t seem to hold out much hope for his riders to win the next World Championship, saying that the course is “one of the least complicated,” he has seen.
“Those who consider Cavendish and Cancellara as favourites for the World Championship are not wrong,” he told Marca.com.
“The route of the pro road race consists of a stretch of road from Melbourne to Geelong, about 75 miles long and without complications on what is a very wide road. There is also a circuit of 15.8 kilometres which will be covered 11 times in a residential development in Geelong. In the case of Under-23 and women, they will only have the circuit.”
He said that the course has two climbs but neither are particularly hard. His verdict is that a bunch sprint is the most likely outcome.
Cancellara was one of the strongest riders in this year’s worlds, winning the time trial and placing fifth in the road race. He’ll be pleased by the assessment that it is a power course, even if he would need to jump away to ensure his victory.
Also happy will be the Great Britain team of Mark Cavendish, who is regarded as the fastest sprinter in the sport. Australian rider Robbie McEwen will also be motivated at what is his best chance of taking the rainbow jersey since the 2002 Worlds in Zolder, where he was second.
However his compatriot Cadel Evans will not fancy his chances of defending the title he took several weeks ago in Mendrisio.