Darren Rafferty up the road at the recent Tour of the Alps two weeks ago and now he goes into the Giro, his third Grand Tour, with unexpected freedom (Photo by Massimo Fulgenzi, homepage photo by Caroline Kerley)
Darren Rafferty and his team mates go into Giro d'Italia without a clear general classification man ride for, and that has one major upside - they should all get a shot at taking their own glory. They will all need great legs and a bit of luck, but it all starts with having the leeway to get up the road.
Though Ireland's Rafferty said it will be strange riding a Grand Tour without Richard Carapaz as the leader of his EF Education-EasyPost team, he added he should get chances for himself, and vowed to "grab the opportunity with both hands"
"I feel a lot more relaxed going into this Giro than last year. I think the second one feels just as nice, but without a lot of the stress and unknowns. So far, so good," Rafferty said in Bulgaria as he prepares for the start of the race on Friday.
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It is weird not having Richie this year. The last two grand tours that I've been a part of have both been for GC. This year, I should hopefully have my own chances during the three weeks.
"I’ll grab the opportunity with both hands and see what I can get out of it. We’re each going to get our own chances. I think that will work out well in the end."
This is Rafferty's third Grand Tour, after riding the Giro last year and making his debut at the Vuelta in his neo pro season in 2024.
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The fact he has that experience in the bank, especially having ridden the Giro last year, will be invaluable in an edition when he will have expected freedom. He also rode strongly at the recent Tour of the Alps (2.Pro), including going up the road, suggesting his form is good.
The unexpected freedom the EF riders will have on the Giro comes after Carapaz, who was due to ride the race as team leader - having won it overall in 2019, finished 3rd last year and 2nd in 2022 - had to have surgery to remove a perineal cyst.
He underwent that procedure at home in Ecuador after the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya.
Though his absence is a major blow to the team, it opens the door to Rafferty and the others in the selection to have a go for themselves.
And it is really clear from the remarks made by his team mates this is a team going into the race with instructions to take their turns at getting up the road to see if they can turn a chance into a win.
Markel Beloki, the 20-year-old Spanish rider making his Giro debut, said "we don't have a leader for GC, so we will try different things".
"We’ll sprint for Madis and then we will try to win from breakaways," he added. "Each rider is going to try on the day he feels good. For me, a good breakaway in a hard stage would be perfect. When I have the legs, I will try for it."
