Mikel Landa will miss the Vuelta after he crashed heavily in the Clasica San Sebastian and was diagnosed with a fracture to his L1 vertebra plus a fracture to his rib.
“We’ve fought the hardest we could during the last 15 days, trying to make sure Mikel could reach a high degree of recovery, but it wasn’t possible,” said Movistar general manager Eusebio Unzué.
“He’s gone through good and bad moments during these two weeks, but in the end, and at the time we had to make a choice, he just doesn’t have sufficient guarantees to go and take the start of the Vuelta.
“Pain in the lumbar zone of his back after the fracture, added to the two broken ribs he suffered in San Sebastián, have combined to make it unfeasible to go to Málaga with the health and fitness he needed. We will now focus on making sure he recovers completely, and after that, we’ll evaluate if he feels fit enough to take the start of the Tour of Britain. It’s an eight-day competition, and it’s also a very intense race. If he’s able to race there, we think he might gain the form he needs so he can be eligible for the Spanish national team in the World Championships.”
Movistar will still have a strong leadership at the Vuelta, as former race winners Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde will head the Spanish squad.
They will be joined by Andrey Amador, Winner Anacona, Daniele Bennati, Richard Carapaz, Imanol Erviti, and Nelson Oliveira.
