Riding his first race as a stagiaire for the team, Caleb Ewan will get an immediate chance to be the protected rider when he lines up at Sunday's London-Surrey Classic. In case of a bunch sprint, the Australian team will ride in support of their young sprinter.

Stagiaire Caleb Ewan will make his debut appearance for ORICA-GreenEDGE this Sunday at the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic.

The team will look to the 20-year-old Australian should the 192km race finish in a bunch sprint.

The five riders for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic are: Brett Lancaster, Caleb Ewan, Christian Meier, Mitch Docker and Simon Yates.

British neo-pro Adam Yates has been withdrawn from the race as he recovers from injuries sustained in a crash at the Clasica San Sebastian last weekend.

Sport director Matthew White has high hopes for Ewan and the team in what is a popular race in the United Kingdom. 

“The objective for us is to win,” White said.

“It’s actually quite a big race. It has a big live television audience and there is a huge Fondo ride that has 30,000 people finishing at the same place as the race so there are big crowds. There are not many races in the UK, especially that finish in downtown London.

“We have Caleb Ewan coming off the Commonwealth Games and he is a quick finisher.

“This race goes either one of two ways. There could be a breakaway that goes away in the middle of the race and sticks or it’ll return to a bunch sprint which has been the case in the previous three editions.

“We will have both options covered and potentially put riders in the break in the tougher sections of the course or otherwise we will be happy for it to come back and we will try to set Caleb up for the sprint.”

A prominent figure on the under-23 circuit, including two stage wins at the Tour de l'Avenir last year, Ewan will officially join the ORICA-GreenEDGE team as a neo-pro in October.

“Caleb did an altitude camp in July and then he came back with a small race in the Czech Republic before his build up with the Commonwealth Games,” White said of the promising rider. 

“After London he will do the Tour de l'Avenir and a couple of Italian one-day races before the world championships and joining the team officially ahead of the Tour of Beijing.”

Playing on the cautious side, Adam Yates will not race on Sunday due to injuries sustained in a heavy crash last weekend at the Clasica San Sebastian. 

“Adam has been cleared of any injuries from the knock to his head but he sprained his thumb which has kept him off the bike his week,” White said.

“He is at home training and may get on the road today but there is no need to rush him back into competition on Sunday.”

ORICA-GreenEDGE at the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic:

Brett Lancaster
Caleb Ewan
Christian Meier
Mitch Docker
Simon Yates