Sam Bennett will lead Deceuninck-QuickStep at Milano-Torino on Wednesday and is in then set to take on Milan-Sanremo next Saturday, though the line-up for that race is not confirmed yet.
The team said the Irishman had performed so impressively
at Vuelta a Burgos, where he took a stage win in dominant fashion, that he was
a natural leader for Wednesday’s race.
It added Milano-Torino would be a “rehearsal” for the
sprinters ahead of Saturday’s Milan-Sanremo, where Bennett looks set to feature
in the same line-up as last year’s winner Julian Alaphilippe.
A changed course for Milan-Sanremo looks like the event
will be more challenging and when the long neutralised section at the start is
added, the riders will be on their bikes for a massive 299km.
However, Bennett has sprinted and climbed very well in
recent seasons and his victory on stage 4 of Vuelta a Burgos, where he attacked
up the final climb, will make him one of the main favourites to win the Italian
classic next weekend.
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“For many, the race will be a rehearsal for
Milano-Sanremo and a good opportunity to see where they are ahead of Saturday’s
important appointment,” said Deceuninck-QuickStep sports director Davide
Bramati of Wednesday’s Milano-Torino.
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“It’s a new parcours which will change everything, except
our desire to be again in the mix and get a good result,” he added of the Superga
climb being removed from the route on Wednesday in favour of a flat course.
“Sam Bennett is naturally our leader; he’s coming to the
start after a very impressive victory in Burgos and will be supported by a
solid team and an experienced lead-out train.”
On Wednesday Bennett will face some very tough opposition,
though in his current form he is capable of beating any of them.
Those penciled in to ride include Peter Sagan (Bora-hansgrohe),
Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal), Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) and Arnaud
Démare (Groupama-FDJ).
Bennett will be supported on Wednesday by Shane Archbold,
Tim Declercq, Ian Garrison, Mikkel Honoré, Yves Lampaert and Michael Mørkøv.
After Wednesday’s race the team’s line-up for
Milan-Sanremo will be confirmed, though the team’s plan at present is to ride
that event with Bennett and Alaphilippe offering different leadership options.
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