Dan Martin takes the Tour of Lombardy in 2014. Both he and Nicolas Roche go into the 2017 edition tomorrow as genuine contenders given their recent form.
Nicolas Roche, Dan Martin eye Tour of Lombardy
Lining up in the final classic of the year tomorrow, Il Lombardia, both Nicolas Roche and Dan Martin have the legs for some late season damage.
Indeed, perhaps not since the days of Sean Kelly and Stephen Roche has Ireland had two men going into such a significant one-day race with a chance of victory.
Roche has not tended to focus much on the classics. That has been more the preserve of Martin.
He has won by Liège–Bastogne–Liège and the Tour of Lombardy; in 2013 and 2014 respectively.
Martin would become the 25th rider to win the race more than once since it began as Milan-Milan in 1905.
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However, this time around Roche is clearly focussed on Lombardy. And he has the form to pull off his first monument win, to add to his two Grand Tour stage victories.
Many things need to go right for both men on the day, of course, if they are to climb to the top step of the podium. And both would very likely need to come into the finish solo to win.
Dan Martin (QuickStep) is coming back from his fractured vertebrae at the Tour de France. It is an injury that has badly blighted this final section of the 2017 campaign.
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But having finished in the front group at the Worlds and then claimed 11th at Milano-Torino yesterday, he may have come good just in the nick of time.
He said he was hopeful his ride yesterday, where he conceded he was under real pressure in the final, had blown out any cobwebs in the system.
For his part, Roche enjoyed a strong Vuelta though his general classification hopes were hit hard by one very bad day.
He was 12th in the very testing TT at the Worlds; a career best result for him in that event.
In the road race four days later he would have very likely finished in the front group of 26 with Martin but for getting caught behind a late crash.
And in the 223km Giro dell'Emilia (1.HC) last weekend he proved one of the very strongest on the final climb.
He would emerge among a four-man chase group hunting down lone leader and eventual winner Giovanni Visconti (Bahrain Merida).
A final attack up the ramp to the finish didn’t work out for Roche and he would finish 4th. But his form after the Vuelta is clearly the best its been this year.
And so based on those rides in recent weeks; the cousins go to the start line tomorrow real contenders.
Tour of Lombardy profile
The race starts in Bergamo and finishes in Como. In between there are 247km with 4,000 metres of climbing.
In the last quarter of the parcours the riders face the climbs of Madonna del Ghisallo, the Muro di Sormano, the Civiglio and the San Fermo della Battaglia.
The final ascent is 2.7km and there are just over 5km to the finish after it; a scenario that can suit either Irish rider.
However, other men are also going into the race in great form; Rigoberto Uran (Cannondale-Drapac) and Vincenzo Nibali (BahrainMerida) the key men.
But Julian Alaphilippe (QuickStep) and Tom Dumoulin (Team Sunweb) are, with others, also dangermen.
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