After the Giro dell’Emilia on Saturday, Bahrain Victorious have stayed in Italy for the next Autumn Italian Classic from the UCI ProSeries: the Tre Valli Varesine, scheduled for Tuesday, October 8th. The race will start in Busto Arsizio and finish according to tradition on the Via Sacco in Varese, after covering nearly 200 km.
The squad remains largely unchanged from the Giro dell’Emilia, where they faced a hilly course in such difficult conditions that only 53 riders managed to finish. The one change is the addition of Santiago Buitrago, who comes in for Nikias Arndt. The Colombian climber will make his debut in this demanding race that is seen as the perfect preparation ‘Il Lombardia’ next Saturday. Along with others who have high hopes for the final monument of the year, Buitrago will use Tuesday as a final warm up for ‘The Race of the Falling Leaves’.
Bahrain Victorious’ last appearance at the Tre Valli Varesine was in 2019, with Damiano Caruso securing a 9th-place finish. Caruso returns this year as the team’s road captain, on the back of a strong performance at the Giro dell’Emilia. TBV has consistently performed well in this race, achieving top-ten results in all three of its participations, including a podium finish in 2017 with Vincenzo Nibali.
“We also have a former winner in our ranks,” said TBV Sports Director Roman Kreuziger, referring to Sonny Colbrelli, who claimed victory in Varese in 2016. “Sonny will be in the team car with me, providing valuable advice to the riders. He won from a reduced bunch sprint, which is one of the possible outcomes here. However, we could also see a solo breakaway or a finale filled with attacks and counter-attacks. What we can rule out is a full bunch sprint – that’s almost impossible in this race. An extra difficulty will be the bad weather. Under heavy rain, riding in good position will be fundamental. And at this point of the season mental strength will make a big difference.”
The Tre Valli Varesine course consists of a long, undulating section leading into the challenging final circuit around Varese, with 3199m of climbing in total. The most decisive part of the race is typically the final circuit: the riders will tackle seven laps of 16 km, featuring the steep Salita dei Ronchi and Montello climbs, followed by two longer laps of 31.3 km that include the Barasso climb (900m at 7.9%).
“With this kind of course, you need not only to be fast, but also able to handle the climbs to stay in contention at the end,” added Kreuziger. “A podium finish would be fantastic, and that’s what we’re aiming for.”