Nicolas Roche looks lean and his form is on the up. With team leader Richie Porte playing down his chances, Roche might get a chance to go a stage win over the next three weeks in Spain (Photo: Chris Auld - BMC Racing)
Nicolas Roche, Dan Martin all set for Vuelta 2018
Ireland’s hopes in Vuelta 2018 are carried by Dan Martin and Nicolas Roche, with both riders having had very different preparations.
Each is well capable of a stage win; maybe more than one. And depending on how the race pans out, they may also challenge overall.
Nicolas Roche is off at 6:34pm in this evening’s 8km TT in Malaga. He is chasing Ilnur Zakarin (Katusha-Alpecin) and is being chased by Jonathan Castroviejo (Team Sky)
Daniel Martin (UAE Team Emirates) rolls down the start ramp in Malaga at 6:51pm. He is chasing Davide Formolo (Bora-Hansgrohe)
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And the man with Martin in his sights, setting off one minute behind him, is Matthias Brändle (Trek-Segafredo).
The first rider off is Jorge Cubero Galvez (Burgos BH). He gets Vuelta 2018 underway at 4:26pm Irish time.
And the last man off is one of the big favourites; Vincenzo Nibali of Bahrain-Merida starting his ride at 7:21pm.
Dan Martin has taken 8th overall in the Tour de France already this season. When that race concluded he went to Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian (1.UWT) the following weekend.
He would finish 12th there, his chances of a win hampered by being caught behind a late crash.
After that race, Martin had a break from competition; spending time at home in Andorra as his wife prepares to give birth to twins.
His UAE Team Emirates squad also has Fabio Aru in its roster for the Vuelta. And it has said Aru was its main man for the general classification.
Martin is in the race to target stage wins, the team apparently believing his break from competition and his efforts already this year do not set him up for a general classification assault.
However, targeting stages rather than the general does not mean Dan Martin won’t feature in the shake-up for the leader’s red jersey.
And many Irish fans would look forward to seeing Martin target stage victories rather than racing tactically as the general classification men will need to.
However, while Aru has come into some form of late it is still unclear how much of an impact he can make over the next three weeks.
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So Dan Martin’s race may be influenced by that. If Aru implodes, Martin may ride for the overall.
Either way, the Irishman should definitely be in the shake-up for mountain-top stage wins.
And it will be very interesting to see how he fares if indeed he forgoes a tilt at the overall classification.
Nicolas Roche might be in a similar position. His race all depends on how BMC Racing team leader Richie Porte is riding.
The Australian crashed out of the Tour de France. And last week he had dampened expectations around his Vuelta appearance.
Porte said he was in nowhere near the form that he had before the Tour. And he insisted he was riding the Vuelta with one eye on the hilly World Championships next month.
Since then Porte has come down with a stomach bug. He missed the Vuelta team presentation because he was ill.
But he will definitely start the race. And he believes he will be able to challenge at some point.
However, if he loses time early and is out of contention for the overall, Roche may get a freer hand.
#LaVuelta18 Team presentation ✔️. What a beautiful location in Malaga!#ICYMI @richie_porte will be at the start line on Saturday but missed the team presentation due to gastrointestinal issues. pic.twitter.com/OOJx0b3gce
— BMC Racing Team (@BMCProTeam) August 23, 2018
Unlike cousin Dan Martin, Roche’s season has been building of late after a challenging period.
He abandoned the Giro in May and was then forced out of the Tour of Poland with illness.
But he bounced back very well in the Arctic Race of Norway; animating the event on the climbs and in the crosswinds.
He would finish 5th overall and would have done even better but for losing time on stage 1. He was caught behind a crash on the uphill finish and relinquished 15 seconds.
Roche was definitely in his best form of the season in Norway. And the Vuelta is a race he has done very well in in the past.
Early stages may offer insight
BMC will be looking to this evening’s TT and tomorrow’s 163.5km stage from Marbella to Caminito del Rey to assess Porte’s form.
Tomorrow’s stage features a cat 3 climb to the summit finish; one where any GC rider not on his game may lose time.
If Porte were to lose time early, it may mean Roche and others on the team immediately get a freer reign.
However, it is also possible Rohan Dennis might win this evening’s TT, in which case Roche will need to work for the team to keep it.
In summary, Dan Martin should be in the fight for stage wins on many of the nine uphill finishes.
And with Roche’s form very much on the up and a question mark hanging over Porte, he may also get the chance –and have the legs - to add to his two career wins on this race.
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