It was a good performance by the Caja Rural-Seguros RGA team in the Gran Premio Miguel Indurain. The team was very active throughout the entire race, with Antonio Molina attacking from the very beginning and being present in the day's escape. Hugh Carthy and Amets Txurruka then broke away, which led to four of the team's riders finishing the stage among the top 13. Amets Txurruka finished 7th, Pello Bilbao 10th, Sergio Pardilla 12th and Fabricio Ferrari 13th.
Ametx Txurruka had a successful race and finished in 7th place, a result that can give him the confidence he needs to compete in the Vuelta al País Vasco: “I felt pretty good, I noticed a big improvement since the Volta. I'm still lacking that extra oomph to help me at the critical moments, but I'm doing pretty well. The team was present in the escape with opportunities to win, we're on the right track”.
Pello Bilbao had this to say: “I felt good, this race was a good test for the País Vasco, I haven't competed in over a month and this is the third race that left me with a good feeling. The team made a good impression and we are in optimum condition for the País Vasco”.
Team selections
- Vuelta La Rioja (5th of April) – The team already knows what it feels like to both win and come second in this race, so the Caja Rural-Seguros RGA riders will fight to repeat the 2013 success. The riders selected for this race are: Carlos Barbero, Lluis Mas, Fernando Grijalba, Eduard Prades, Ricardo Vilela, Ángel Madrazo, Miguel Ángel Benito and José Gonçalves. Manegers Josemi Hernandez analyses the team’s objectives: “La Vuelta a La Rioja is a special race in the team calendar, we have managed to achieve good results in previous years, such as winning with Lasca. Our results lead us to believe that we can aspire to the ultimate goal, on this occasion with Carlos Barbero who did very well in his recent competitions”.
-Vuelta al Páis Vasco (6th-11th of April) – Another World Tour race that the team usually performs very well in, it is the “home race” for Omar Fraile, Amets Txurruka and Pello Bilbao, an added incentive that they will no doubt make the most of. The line-up for this race is: David Arroyo, Sergio Pardilla, Pello Bilbao, Amets Txurruka, Omar Fraile, Hugh Carthy, Fabricio Ferrari and Antonio Molina. Fernández comments a week before the race: “La Vuelta al País Vasco is one of the World Tour races that the team competes in during the season, we participate with three Basque riders who the fans support with a particular enthusiasm, we hope to be able to put on a good show from beginning to end by fighting to win every day and in every stage”.
- Clásica de Amorebieta (12th of April) – Pello Bilbao won this race last year and the team will once again give it their all in the hope of repeating that success.
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