A yr after he blew the Vuelta a España aside with a gutsy long-distance break that netted him two weeks within the lead and a closing podium place in Madrid, Ben O’Connor has confirmed that he’s again within the working for the Vuelta general once more.
A robust journey on stage 2 to Limone Piemonte, O’Connor remained effectively inside the group of fundamental favourites, mendacity thirteenth at 16 seconds behind chief Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike).
The Jayco-AIUla chief defined to reporters on the stage 3 begin that after his Tour de France GC bid didn’t materialise as he would have appreciated – in no small half as a consequence of a crash within the first week, though O’Connor then amply compensated by profitable the hardest mountain stage of the race on the Col de la Loze – he’d be again within the hunt for the Vuelta general.
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Nonetheless, O’Connor additionally stated that he is not going to participate within the upcoming UCI Street World Championships, a yr after being within the profitable squad within the crew time trial and taking silver within the elite males’s street race.
O’Connor was guarded about why he will not be current in Rwanda, saying merely it was for “a number of causes” and that he would as an alternative concentrate on the end-of-season Italian Classics after the Vuelta. Different prime elite males not collaborating within the 2025 Worlds, who’ve confirmed their non-participation in latest days or perhaps weeks, embrace Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel.
Compared, the 2024 Vuelta runner-up was way more prepared to debate his causes for having one other shot on the Spanish Grand Tour, a race the place O’Connor produced a shocking two-week defence of the purple jersey that solely ended simply two days earlier than the end in Madrid.
“I got here right here feeling fairly good after the Tour, I had a good time right here within the Vuelta a España final yr, I missed a little bit bit on the GC within the Tour final yr, so it is time to get the GC finished right here,” O’Connor defined.
Though it is a lengthy technique to Madrid, and the principle mountain challenges are but to come back, O’Connor received off to a really perfect begin with a powerful journey on Limone Piemonte, a punchy uphill Cat. 2 climb that he stated was “not the very best end for me in any respect”.
“However I used to be glad to be in roughly in place, it really felt fairly candy, ultimately I am probably not explosive so it was about holding the wheels.”
As he put it, the best way he rode on Piemonte was “respectable sufficient” and within the course of it was “one other stage ticked off”. However he’s greater than conscious, too, he stated, that preventing for GC in a Grand Tour is a day-by-day course of.
“It has been a superb begin, in order I stated, it is about executing each single stage after which by the top hopefully you are still within the combat for it,” he concluded.
The second week, in any case, is more likely to be the place the race may very well be gained and misplaced, O’Connor concurred.
“The Angliru [stage 13], the Farrapona [stage 14], nowadays are tremendous essential. In the long run it is about Watts per kilo, so that you simply should go together with it and go as quick as doable.”
On the plus aspect, in fact, in terms of the Vuelta, having finished so effectively in 2024, his confidence is that a lot larger for 2025.
“That is all a bit extra regular due to the yr passed by,” he concluded. “Now I actually know what I can do, so if something in that approach it’s kind of simpler.”
The tip consequence this time, although, will solely be clear on September 14 in Madrid.
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