Argentina has become for some years now the country which witnesses Quick-Step Floors’ first wins of the season, with the Belgian team taking no less than 15 victories in half a decade.
Vuelta a San Juan returns next year for its 36th running (21-28 January) and the eight-day race puts on the table four stages for the sprinters, one that suits the attackers and a short individual time trial serving as an appetizer for the GC riders, before the big battle on the Alto del Colorado (20.7 km, 4.2%).
Fernando Gaviria will kick off 2018 at the Vuelta a San Juan, where he scored a brace of wins last season, a feat matched at that edition by his trusted lead-out man Maximiliano Richeze, who’s set for another appearance in front of his countrymen in January.
Iljo Keisse will also be part of the six-man Quick-Step Floors team, together with Rémi Cavagna and neo-pros Alvaro Hodeg and Jhonatan Narvaez, the champion of Ecuador.
“Vuelta a San Juan is a good race to start the season. We took five stage wins at the previous edition, so it’s only normal to line up at the start motivated to start the year with a good result. Concerning our team, you can see it’s a mix of young and experienced riders, who will have their chances to shine, especially in the bunch sprints, so we are looking forward to this race”, said sports director Davide Bramati.
