Here's a great video interview with Philip Deignan about his overall win at the Tour of the Gila, which concluded in New Mexico on Sunday
The Unitedhealthcare professional, and stage winner in the 2009 Vuelta, climbed very well on the last stage to take 3rd on the day and lift the final winner's red jersey. He had also climbed very well early in the week and time trialled out of his socks to take 5th in the test and really put himself in contention for the overall win.
"The general plan was to be super aggressive,” he said of the final stage.
“We knew we had eight strong guys here and were going to try and isolate the jersey pretty early on and make his team work hard. So we were super aggressive from the start.”
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Heading into the final climb, Deignan held a 30-second gap with a group of nine chasing, including Francisco Mancebo (5-Hour Energy), Janier Acevedo (Jamis Hagens Berman), and second place overall Phil Gaimon of Bissell Pro Cycling. Shortly after Deignan was caught and Acevedo was noticeably struggling, Mancebo attacked within the final kilometers. Deignan crossed the line 11 seconds down, and minutes ahead of Acevedo securing the win.
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On winning the overall Deignan said: “It’s been a few years since I’ve won a race. I had a lot of problems last year, so it’s good to be back to my normal level. I know what I can do. Our team performance here at Gila was very strong and it is perfect timing heading into (the Amgen Tour of) California and it’ll be good for the confidence. Everybody’s been so strong. We’ve had a different guy on the podium every day and it just shows we have such strength and depth. We’ve always had a plan every day and we’ve always executed it. We’re on a good path heading into California."
Deignan has had an indifferent couple of seasons. It's great to see him back in such good form and looking so well and so confident speaking here.
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