Enric Mas (Movistar) commented on the rest day of Lap that a place on the podium in Madrid is, given his profile as a runner, “more important than winning the stage of Angliru“, although he specified that winning the mythical Asturian summit “would be very nice.”
To achieve their main goal of the podium, one of the tactical possibilities is to attack from a distance.
“Attack from a distance is a possibility, but obviously being on the podium is the personal and team goal. I don’t know if it is an attack from a distance, but it is a goal, it is obviously,” he said.
Faced with the possibility of being on the podium or winning the Angliru stage, Mas shows his doubts, but the “cajon” takes the lead.
“I don’t know what to say, I want to win in Angliru and achieve the podium, but it’s true that because of my profile as a rider, the podium will be more important than winning in Angliru, also because of the confidence it gives me of the team. On the other hand, a stage at Angliru would be super nice,” he explained.
But he clarified that if he attacked “it is because we studied and decided from the car, otherwise it is not worth attacking to reach position 20. That is useless.”
The leader of Movistar, three times second in the Vuelta, does not believe there are “bad vibes” in the interval Cuss, Roglic and Vingegaard for the internal struggle to win the Vuelta.
“I think that there won’t be a bad atmosphere between them, they are a team. Each one can have their individuality, but they don’t show it, they are a group and I don’t think they will attack each other . . Another thing is that one day one of them sinks and the other moves forward,” he explained.
Mas expanded his view by commenting that “Jumbo has no need to create bad vibes after winning the Giro with Roglic and the Tour with Vingegaard. We will not make them feel bad and complicate their lives,” he assured.
Regarding the fall of Remco Evenepoel in the Tourmalet stage and his subsequent exhibition in Larra-Belagua, the Balearic cyclist highlighted the greatness of the world time trial champion.
“For Remco it is a very big challenge, especially for a cyclist like him, with his profile. Many people rely on him, his teammates, his sponsors. He had a bad day, but then he knew how to turn the situation around. Remco is a real crack and will fight until the end,” he said.
Mas recalled that “the two stages in Asturias and the one in Madrid will be a real battle.”
Source: La Verdad
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