British sprinter Mark Cavendish could race the Giro d'Italia this year, according to The Independent. He returns after a one-year absence, deciding to skip the Tour of California.
He won his first Grand Tour stage in Catanzaro-Lungomare at the 2008 Giro d'Italia. He added an additional stage win before that Giro ended. The next year, he returned to win three stages and wear the leader's pink jersey for two days.
HTC General Manager Bob Stapleton raced Cavendish at the shorter Tour of California last year for sponsorship reasons.
"With the Giro d'Italia taking place at the same time we had to plan the roster carefully," said Stapleton last year. "The Tour of California will be a big focus for him in the lead up to the Tour de France."
The idea of racing the Giro d'Italia this year, according to The Independent, is to gain points in the national rankings. Cavendish wants to have the maximum, eight Brits to support him at the World Championships in Copenhagen this September.
His goals are to win the Worlds rainbow jersey and the Tour de France's green.
"The green [points] jersey is difficult to predict because they've changed the way the points are awarded so we won't know how hard it will be to win until we see a detailed route. But it could work in my favour," he said.
"Then I've already been to see the 2011 World Championships course in Denmark, when I was over there riding with a group from a charity. It's going to suit me."
Cavendish travelled to Copenhagen on October 31 with HTC's Danish sports director, Brian Holm to preview the course. The race, September 25, starts in Copenhagen and then travels to a suburb Rudersdal in the north. In Rudersdal, the race takes in 18 laps of 14 kilometres each.
HTC is expected to race for the classification at the Tour of California with Tejay Van Garderen. He said earlier this year the race is a big goal for him and he is targeting it.