With a serious gesture, of maximum concentration before the great responsibility that lies ahead, Richard Carapaz attended the media from Budapest, town that hosts the Great Start that’s it Italy tour and where the Ecuadorian, along with the rest of the Ineos group expedition, has spent several days reconnoitering the terrain with his companions. He does not want to leave anything to chance for Carchi in what is going to be much of his goal for the year, a Giro-Tour double in which he has all his illusions.
“We come with a quite powerful team and with clear ideas to try to win. I come with the full weight of the team and that encourages me a lot to face this challenge. Having ridden more grand tours gives me more confidence than when I was younger. My preparation has been optimal in Ecuador and I face this Giro in a very positive way”, stated a Richie who was not so clear when giving names regarding his most direct rivals: “There are four or five riders who come with the intention of making a very good general classification and none of them should be ruled out. Stage 19 is very hard, but on the fourth day we already have a serious mountain like Etna. In the Giro there are always surprises and sometimes it is not the queen stage that is more decisive, but others. From Etna we will really know who our opponents are and what we can find.”
In all the pools, the names of Joao Almeida and Simon Yates as the main threats to Carapaz, who aspires to his second trophy Endless following the one won in 2019, his last participation in the Italian round. The Portuguese, as he confirmed this Wednesday, is clear where to point his gaze: “We’ll have an eye on everyone, but especially Richard. In Volta a Catalunya we might see that he was strong mentally and that he was capable of attacking from afar. He wasn’t afraid of anything.”
Primera pink jersey
Beyond the fight for the general there is also life. And a lot. In this Giro, one of the biggest stars will be the spectacular Mathieu van der Poel, to whom all the lights point to get the first pink jersey. However, the Dutchman does not see it so clearly: “Wearing the pink jersey will not be easy. I would like to achieve it, but my desire for pink is less than the one I had for the yellow jersey of the Tour last year. There I found the jersey where it was least expected. The 1st stage was supposedly chosen for me, but I dressed it later, in Mûr-De-Bretagne”. The show is regarding to start.
