Eddie Dunbar could have excelled at La
Vuelta given the way the race has panned out for his team and his absence was a
big blow for the young Irishman, Sean Kelly has said.
Kelly, who won La Vuelta in 1988 and took
16 stages wins in the race during his career, said he felt sorry for Dunbar and
was disappointed for him.
While there was nothing Dunbar could have done about his situation, as he tested positive for Covid-19 last month, Kelly rued the Irish climber not being on the start line considering he could have enjoyed rare freedom on the mountain stages.
He believed the last three weeks would
have offered Dunbar the biggest chance of his career to date because he would
not have been tied to team duties for Ineos Grenadiers on every stage.
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“That was shocking, really,” Kelly told stickybottle of Dunbar testing positive for Covid19 in the build up to the Vuelta. “He was riding so well at Tour de Suisse. The Vuelta would have been a good race for him and we know he was on that good run of form…
“He’ll get a start in another big tour
again with them. But now another year has passed and time is ticking away for
him. And when you look at the way this Vuelta has gone, the opportunities would
have been there for him to get into the breakaways.
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“With Bernal not at his best and Carapaz
pulling out after running out of power because of all the racing he has already
done… the opportunities to be allowed get into a breakaway would have been
great for Dunbar this year with Ineos on those difficult mountain stages we’ve
had.
“When you see those stages that Michael
Storer (Team DSM) has won, Eddie would have had a great chance on those kinds
of days in this particular Vuelta.”
Kelly was concerned that a similar
opportunity may not arise for Dunbar again soon on a Grand Tour, though he
hoped it would.
“With Ineos, if Bernal comes back strong
and he goes for the Giro again next year, for example, and Bernal is at his
best, well then the team mates won’t be allowed to go in those breakaways. But
this year’s Vuelta was a real opportunity for Eddie to get into the moves.”
Dunbar aside, Kelly said it was
disappointing to see not Irish riders in La Vuelta this year, citing Nicolas
Roche in particular.
“I was very surprised he didn’t get a
ride at La Vuelta,” he said of Roche. “But I think with his team; they gave a
choice and said ‘if you’re going to the Olympics, you may not get selected for
the Vuelta’.
“But he wanted to do the Olympics. That
was a real shame because he was riding
so well at the Giro, he’d a very good end to the Giro. And we know at the
Vuelta he always performs well, it’s where he’s performed at his best. So it
was a disappointment not to see him there.”
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