Caja Rural-Seguros RGA bids farewell to 2015 with a successful outcome of 17 triumphs. This is the highest number of triumphs since the team’s return to professional competion in 2010. Besides these victories, the team made it onto the podium on more than 100 occasions and has been close to reaching 150 top 10 places during the season. These numbers are proof of the great year of a well established, highly enthusiastic squad.

 

2015 comes to a very positive close as far as wins are concerned, but the team had a complicated beginning with multiple injuries, three of those long-term, like the ones suffered by Sergio Pardilla, Javier Aramendía and Francesco Lasca.

 

Of the 17 triumphs obtained, there was one general classification, 3 classics and 13 stages. The riders who managed to win were Carlos Barbero (5), Pello Bilbao (3), Omar Fraile (2), Eduard Prades (2), Amets Txurruka (2), Jose Gonçalves (1), Ángel Madrazo (1) and Lluis Mas (1).

 

The 17 triumphs took place in 8 different countries:

-       Spain 4

-       Portugal 2

-       Italy 2

-       Turkey 2

-       USA 1

-       Canada 4

-       Norway 1

-       France 1

 

Besides these victories, Caja Rural-Seguros RGA has completed a great Vuelta a España. During the tour, the team obtained 7 top 10 places, among which are the 2nd places achieved by Pello Bilbao in Stage 8 and by Jose Gonçalves in Stage 20. The team made it onto the podium 23 times during the Vuelta, with the crowning glory being Omar Fraile’s King of the Mountains victory. Caja Rural-Seguros RGA was present in the escapes in 14 out of the 19 road stages, and completed 53.1% of the Vuelta kilometres in escapes.

 

In general numbers, the Caja Rural-Seguros RGA numbers since 2010 are:

 

44 total triumphs, obtained in 10 different countries with 20 different riders. The victories are spread over 28 stages, 7 classics, 6 general classifications and 3 national championships.

 

Triumphs per country

Spain 16, Portugal 9, France 5, Norway 2, Turkey 2, Gabon 1, USA 1, Canada 4, Italy 2 and Bulgaria 2

 

Triumphs per rider

Arturo Mora 1, Oleg Chuzhda 1, José Herrada 3, Javier Moreno 2, Manuel Cardoso 3, Yelko Gómez 1, Francesco Lasca 3, Antonio Piedra 2, Danail Petrov 2, Amets Txurruka 5, Rubén Fernández 2, Luis León Sánchez 2, Pello Bilbao 4, Davide Vigano 1, Omar Fraile 2, Lluis Mas 1, Carlos Barbero 5, Ángel Madrazo 1, José Gonçalves 1 and Eduard Prades 2

 

The director of Caja Rural-Seguros RGA, Eugenio Goikoetxea sums up the season: “It has been a very good year, we missed out on a Vuelta stage victory, that would have made it an exceptional year, but we have to be happy that we were so close, we were present during the escapes and within the top 5 on several occasions. We take home 17 triumphs with Eduard Prades’ win at the Coppa Sabatini to top it all off, where the greatest riders in history have won, just to be represented among them is remarkable”.

 

Now that the year is over, the team already has its sights set on next year: “This never stops, and we hope it never does. These are tough times for sports, we are lucky to have such good sponsors as Caja Rural, Seguros RGA and Fuji. Their support fills us with enthusiasm and, having just finished the year we are already thinking about starting 2016, not everyone can say the same, and we have to value that”.

 

 

 

Josemi Fernández, director of the professional Caja Rural-Seguros RGA team, analyses the season’s results: “The year, in general, has been the team’s best from a sports point of view. Both in terms of results as well as in the atmosphere among all the team members, that was one of the key factors that contributed to such a successful season. The Vuelta left us with a bittersweet feeling as we were so close to winning a stage, but it was outstanding”.

 

Regarding the triumphs, Fernandez points out that “we have managed to win without having a clear winner on paper. But we have always shown up at every race with competitive people, with real options to win. The team’s average level has been very high, we have worked for everyone, according to the riders’ capacities as well as the characteristics of each race in order to search for the best opportunities to win. That is what we have to take home with us, we were characterised in each race by our search for victory and by our prominence and things turned out well”.

 

In 2016, Fernandez hopes “to continue moving forward and to keep evolving as we have been doing over the past few years. We have to enjoy what we have achieved in 2015, but 2016 is a new year and all the victory tallies are reset to zero. To win with those little factors that we have faced this year, we’ve been really lucky. Let’s hope we have a superior level next year so we can keep up that luck, although what happened this year shouldn’t condition our performance next year. This year hasn’t been all easy, we’ve had to endure having almost half of our riders injured, but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and having started so badly really makes you appreciate the victories that much more”.

 

Triumphs in 2015

1.     Coppa Sabatini – Eduard Prades

2.     Volta Portugal – Stage 8, Eduard Prades 1st

3.     Vuelta a Burgos – Stage 1, Carlos Barbero 1st

4.     Volta Portugal – Stage 5 – José Gonçalves 1st

5.     Clásica de Ordizia – Ángel Madrazo 1st

6.     Tour de Beauce – Pello Bilbao 1st, General Classification

7.     Tour de Beauce Stage 4 – Carlos Barbero 1st

8.     Tour de Beauce Stage 2 – Ametx Txurruka 1st

9.     Tour de Beauce Stage 1 – Carlos Barbero 1st

10. Philadelphia Classic – Carlos Barbero 1st

11. Tour of Norway – Amets Txurruka 1st

12. Vuelta a Madrid – Stage 2 Carlos Barbero 1st

13. 4 days of Dunkirk – Omar Fraile 1st

14. Tour of Turkey Stage 8 – Lluis Mas 1st

15. Tour of Turkey, Stage 6 – Pello Bilbao 1st

16. Giro dell’Apennino – Omar Fraile 1st

17. Vuelta Castilla y León, Stage 1 – Pello Bilbao 1st

 

Vuelta 2015 in numbers

7 Top10

Stage 1 Team time trial 8th

Stage 4 José Gonçalves 5th

Stage 8 Pello Bilbao 2nd

Stage 10 José Gonçalves 5th

Stage 16 Omar Fraile 6th

Stage 18 Jose Gonçalves 3rd

Stage 19 David Arroyo 8th

Stage 20 José Gonçalves 2nd

 

23 Podiums

Jose Gonçalves Most Combative Rider

Omar Fraile King of the Mountain (19)

Omar Fraile Most Combative Rider (2)

Amets Txurruka Most Combative Rider

Ángel Madrazo Most Combative Rider (2)

 

Escaped riders

Gonçalves Stage 2 from km 20 to 148 - 128 km out of 158 in the escape

Fraile Stage 3 from km 5 to 131 – 126 out of 158 in the escape

Bilbao Stage 4 from km 205 to 207 – 2 out of 209 in the escape

Txurruka Stage 7 from km 12 to 188 – 176 out of 191 in the escape

Madrazo Stage 8 from km 33 to 150 – 117 out of 182 in the escape

Gonçalves Stage 8 from 172 to 176 – 4 km out of 182 in the escape

Omar Stage 9 from km 3 to 160 – 157 km out of 168 in the escape

David Arroyo Stage 10 from km 29 to 116 – 87 km of out 146 in the escape

Omar Stage 11 from km 8 to 119 – 111 km out of 138 in the escape

Ricardo Vilela Stage 15 from km 37 to 165 – 128 km out of 175 in the escape

Omar Stage 16 from km 1 to 178 – 177 km out of 185 in the escape

Madrazo and Gonçalves Stage 18 from km 55 to 204 – 149 km out of 204 in the escape

Arroyo and Vilela Stage 19 from km 5 to 185 – 180 km out of 185 in the escape

Arroyo, Gonçalves and Pello Stage 20 from km 4 to 175 – 171 km out of 175 in the escape

Omar Fraile, Stage 21 from km 50 to 93 – 43 km out of 98 in the escape