Orica-GreenEDGE rider Simon Gerrans sustained a fractured hip after crashing in the Vuelta a España but he is currently making good progress in his recovery programme.

The progress has seen ham get back on his bike and this has led him to believe that his performances in the early stages of the 2014 season might improve as he takes to the starting line in the Santos Tour Down Under in January.

“I'll be at Tour Down Under,” he told the Herald Sun. “We're yet to make a decision about what I'll do following that but I'll put a big emphasis on being in good shape in January and trying to make the most of the unfortunate end of this season and use that to my advantage early next year.”

Gerrans won the Santos Tour Down Under in 2006 and 2012 and is also a two time conqueror of the Herald Sun Tour race. The latter has made a return to the UCI calendar and the 2.1 race will take place from February 5 to February 9. Gerrans confirmed that he might compete in the Herald Sun Tour race as well but that no decision will be made until the fabric of the stages become fully known.

“I'll wait to make a decision on whether I do it once I have that information,” Gerrans said.

Gerrans delivered impressive results throughout the 2013 season, winning a stage in the Santos Tour Down Under and also taking stage victories in the Volta a Catalunya and the Vuelta al País Vasco. He also rounded out the podium in the Amstel Gold Race.

The opening week of the Tour de France provided the climax, however, with a stage win on day three and a team time trial victory 24 hours later putting him in the yellow jersey.

The Australian hoped to carry his splendid form into the Spanish Grand Tour, but those hopes were dashed as he crashed onto the tarmac on stage three of the Vuelta. To begin with the injury wasn’t thought to be too serious and as a result Gerrans continued to race through agonizing pains for another ten stages before finally abandoning.

“I was aware that I’d hurt it in some way but not quite aware of what,” he explained. “I had the goal of the world championships and knew I had to get through a certain amount of the Tour of Spain to prepare. But it was becoming more and more painful and uncomfortable and I was doing everything I could just to get through each stage.”

The bright side of the coin for Gerrans is that his rescheduled preparations for next season might see him take to the starting line in top form for his objectives of the opening stages of the 2014 season. These include the Santos Tour Down Under and the first Classic of the season, the Milan-San Remo.

Gerrans won the Italian Monument in 2012 and would, obviously, relish the opportunity to repeat this feat.

“With this injury finishing my 2013 season that bit earlier, it will mean my pre-season will be a couple of weeks in front of where it normally would be. So hopefully it will put me in better shape for January,” he said.

Gerrans’ chances of walking away with the honours in La Primavera have been enhanced by the organisers’ decision to add an extra climb to the parcours, that of Pompeiaga.

Pompeiaga will be sandwiched in between the infamous Cipressa and the Poggio, and should bolster the climbers’ chances of denying the pure sprinters.

As a powerful rider on short climbs and possessing a strong finish, Gerrans will have few complaints about this amendment to the parcours as he continues his recovery and his efforts to prime himself for the first Classic of the forthcoming season.