In such an intense period of racing, we took the opportunity to take stock of these first months of racing, reflect on the upcoming Tour de France and a second part of the season full of great events together with the voice of Eurosport cycling Riccardo Magrinibusy last week on Discovery with the Tour of Switzerland after having also been applauded presenter of the 24h Castelli di Feltre organized by Pedale Feltrino led by Ivan Piol.
Let’s take a small step back: on the weekend of 7/9 June you were one of the presenters of the 24h Castelli di Feltre, a record edition with over 16,000 people in the audience. What idea did you have?
“It was a wonderful idea on the part of the organisers, Ivan Piol together with his wife Anna and on the part of the historic sponsor Castelli. An event that is 80% pure fun through the teams in which aspects of friendship and sharing emerge, while for the remaining part the real competition emerges where the teams battle it out in 24 hours. The average was really high, over 41 km/h in 24 hours, and this says a lot about the spirit of the event and the route they designed within the center of Feltre. This year was the first time for me, because it often coincides with the races on the international cycling calendar, but I hope to be able to return next year too.”
One of the most anticipated Tours de France of recent years is approaching: is Pogacar the favorite despite the hardships of the Giro?
“He is the number one favourite, despite the fact that there are qualitatively very strong riders.”
Considering the unknowns of Vingegaard and Evenepoel, Roglic seems the most equipped opponent for Pogacar, even if he always had something less. Is there a credible rival?
“Roglic, Evenepoel and Vingegaard are Tadej’s most credible rivals, but there is also Bernal who has recovered well and is finding the right pedal stroke. In theory, at least on paper, there are five teams with their own leaders who will command the race and this will increase the spectacle also because there could be some very interesting developments in the race during the three weeks.”
Is it a hypothesis to think that Pogacar could aim to win the Giro, Tour and Vuelta this year?
“I don’t think the Vuelta is in his plans. Should he win the Tour, I believe he will then aim for the World Championships in Zurich and the Giro di Lombardia at the end of the season which is certainly one of the races that best suits the Slovenian. Giro, Tour and Vuelta could perhaps be a hypothesis for next year, but at the moment it is still early to think about it; in this case he will have to make a more reserved calendar for the three Grand Tours to attempt a record never achieved in the history of cycling”.
What did you think of Antonio Tiberi at the Giro d’Italia? In the future will he be there to compete to win stage races? Does he have room for improvement?
“Tiberi certainly has room for improvement. At the Giro he achieved an excellent placing and something was expected from him, so he also had a bit of pressure on him. Without the puncture in the Oropa stage, he probably would have been able to fight for the podium. Antonio rode well in the Giro and was the only one of the classic men to try to attack Pogacar and this showed great character.”
Pellizzari made an excellent impression: do you think the Grand Tours could be up his alley?
“He demonstrated it by doing a difficult Giro d’Italia and showed himself in the last week, which is usually the one that creates the most problems for a rider. He is certainly one of our most promising youngsters for the future and from next year he will be at Bora-Hansgrohe, a team that will be fundamental for him to make a further leap in quality while also having riders like Roglic and Hindley in the team who will certainly be great masters for him, and this is no small thing. VF Group Bardiani CSF Faizanè was certainly an important team for Giulio’s growth.”
What idea did you have about Piganzoli?
“Piganzoli is a regular rider, we saw him be part of the riders immediately behind Pogacar in the Giro, but he is a guy who still needs to be evaluated. Davide has qualities for stage races, but we’ll have to see with time.”
Milan has great potential, but still makes a lot of mistakes: how can certain errors be corrected?
“Milan is young and therefore like everyone else he still has to learn and gain experience. For me Milan is something more than a sprinter and with time he will prove it, for example I see him very well also for the Northern Classics”.
It seems that something is moving for Italy in stage races, less so in one-day ones. Bagioli hasn’t convinced so far…
“After the change of team, Bagioli certainly expected something more, at the moment the results are not up to expectations, but maybe in this second part of the season he will surprise us”.
Who is the favorite for the road race at the Paris Olympic Games?
“Van der Poel”.
In your opinion, can Ganna win the Olympic time trial, or do Tarling and Evenepoel have something more?
“Ganna is our hope having also been World Champion in the specialty, but it is also true that the competition is very high starting with Tarling and Evenepoel. The last Olympic champion in the time trial was Roglic but it is equally true that in the last four years there has been a strong progress in the time trials by the runners. Another name that could be among the favorites is the Swiss Küng”.
