The 2014 season ended as a huge disappointment for Mark Cavendish. However, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that the Manxman is more determined and motivated than ever as he wants to reclaim his position at the top of the sprint hierarchy.

It happened during the Tour de France. The Tour that started from his home country and in which he was convinced "to win five stages". However, he fit the ground in the first stage and was forced to watch the rest on television. That was when Mark Cavendish really found the fire that has led him to wins in Milan-Sanremo (2009), the Worlds (2011), 25 stages of the Tour, 10 stages of the Giro and much more. He thought he had a couple of seasons at his maximum level but now he wants to ride until he is 36-37 years. And he wants to reclaim the role as sprint king that has been taken by Marcel Kittel. He wants it so much that according to his close friends, no one has seen him work as much as he does these days.

Cav is now in Italy. In the last few days he has taken advantage of the Montichiari velodrome to train. Later he will ride the Six-Days of Ghent with his teammate Iljo Keisse, from November 18 to 23. But the track mainly serves as a means for Cavendish to be ready for the road season. Cavendish wants to be strong from the start. And to finish strongly. Having been forced to watch the last Tour on television has triggedered someting inside him. Most of all it has let him know how much he loves his sport and how much work it takes to stay on top at the end of a season that was goo (11 wins) but not super.

At the moment, Cavendish walks 3 times per week, goes to the gym 4 times a week and even does long riders in the hard wind that usually characterizes the wather on the Isle of Man. If last year Cavendish made headlines in the winter for some pictures where he was clearly overweight, the music has changed. Cavendish also wants to be updated on the possible route for Milan-Sanremo. After several years out of contention, he resurfaced in 2014 where he finished 5th but was unable to match Alexander Kristoff's power. And it is clear that he will have chances as there will be no Le Manie or Pompeiana climbs in 2015. Furthermore, his contract will end at the end of the season and lots of victories, especially in the beginning of the year, would put him in a stronger position for the negotiations. Tom Boonen is approaching the final part of his career and Cavendish has the chance to take over the role as the symbol of the team even though Boonen is Belgian and the myth of his triumphs in Flanders and Roubaix remains difficult to match.

Cavendish knows that a new generation of sprinters with the likes of Kittel and Nacer Bouhanni is knocking on the door. And he knows that Kittel who has twice won on the Champs-Elysees, is not easy to beat in certain types of sprint at the end of easy races. However, he wants to improve his climbing. Nothing is impossible for the Brit, especially now that he has rediscovered his love for the bike and is more motivated than ever.