Richie Porte had an outstanding 2013 season that earned him the right to lead Team Sky in the 2014 Giro d'Italia. The Australian is likely to use his big home race, the Tour Down Under, as an important warm-up event and doesn't want to just make up the numbers.

2013 was the year when the extent of Richie Porte's talent was finally unveiled. With his 7th place and best young rider's jersey in the 2010 Giro d'Italia, he had long given indications that he had the potential to become one of the best stage racers in the world but a couple of years working as a super domestique for riders like Alberto Contador and Bradley Wiggins had put his personal ambitions on a temporary hold.

In 2013, he was still the loyal support rider for Chris Froome in most of the Brit's many victories but he also got the chance to ride for himself in select races. An overall win in the Paris-Nice was followed by a 2nd place in the Vuelta al Pais Vasco and he even managed to finish 2nd in both the Criterium International and the Criterium du Dauphiné despite riding in support of Froome.

Those results have earned him the right to lead Team Sky in next year's Giro d'Italia where he is set to clash with Australia's major grand tour star Cadel Evans. The BMC rider will forgo the Tour de France to focus on the Italian grand tour where he finished 3rd last year despite minimal preparation.

The anticipated battle between Australia's two best stage racers is attracting much attention in their home country who may get the chance to witness a dress rehearsal in their own backyard when the Tour Down Under kicks off the WorldTour season. Evans has already confirmed that he will ride the Australian race for the first time since 2010 when he finished 6th while wearing the world champion's jersey.

Now Porte confirms that he is very likely to also return to the event for the first time since 2011 where he did the race without any personal ambitions. In the past two seasons he came out with all guns blazing right from the start from the season and based on his recent statements, that could very well be the case in 2014 as well.

''I'm 99 per cent sure I will race in it," he told Sydney Morning Herald. "It's an important event, especially with the Giro only coming four months after. If I am in it, I won't be there to just make up the numbers. It's the first tour of the year."

However, he refuses to see it as just a two-rider battle between Evans and him.

''I will want to see where I'm at … and we will have a good team; but it won't just be [me] and Cadel … You'll see riders like [former winner] Simon Gerrans and Orica-GreenEDGE up for it. It will be their race to lose in many ways.''

Compared to their past appearances at the race, the Tour Down Under has been made tougher in recent years. In 2012, the race included its first ever summit finish on Old Willunga Hill and the spectacular finale was repeated this year. In 2014, the penultimate stage will once again finish on the famous climb while the second stage will finish with the uphill drag into Stirling and stage 3 will see the riders climb the Corkscrew Hill just 7,5km from the finish.

The Tour Down Under takes place from January 21 to 26.