Vincenzo Nibali (Liquigas) is ready to defend his title at the Vuelta a España, which starts this Saturday with a team time trial in Benidorm. Nibali secured his win last year by bouncing back on the steep climb of the Bola del Mundo. With the Angliru back in the mix, Nibali may face another tough hill battle, but he is ready for the challenge.
The two directeurs sportifs will be the same as during last year's Vuelta - Mario Scirea and Dario Mariuzzo "We know how strong we are and we're also aware of the expectations surrounding our team," says Scirea. "Nibali's race preparations at Passo San Pellegrino with our trainer Paolo Slongo went extremely well." After the training, Nibali tested himself in competition. "In Poland he showed that his condition has clearly improved: we are sure he will be one of the main contenders."
While the staff of Liquigas expects Nibali at the forefront, it won't put any pressure on Sagan. "Sagan is also in very good form but we mustn't forget that he is only 21 years old and this is his first attempt at a three-week race." Still, there is a bit of hope for a stage win through the Slovakian."He needs to take the race a day at a time, without any pressure; but also be aware that his enormous talent can produce great rewards for the team."
The Liquigas outfit has not just those two riders. "Our Spanish mission isn't just based on Vincenzo and Peter - their seven teammates provide them with essential support and there is no reason why they shouldn't target a few stage wins." Eros Capecchi (Giro d'Italia stage winner to San Pellegrino Terme this year), Valerio Agnoli, Damiano Caruso, Francesco Bellotti, Mauro Da Dalto, Alan Marangoni and Dominik Nerz accompany the two leaders.
"Our main strength will be that we all share the same goal,"says Scirea. "The Vuelta offers riders the chance to raise the bar and can be an important platform for launching a cyclist's career."
He singled out one rider especially. "This particularly applies to Capecchi, who has already proven he can compete at the top level and we plan for him to work with Nibali in the battle for overall victory. We expect to see massive commitment from him and from everyone else on the team so we can try to repeat last year's incredible experience," said Scirea.