Pozzato, Bennati chase a role on the Italian team
Filippo Pozzato wants to lead the Italian national team in the Road World Championships in Geelong and Melbourne, Australia. Daniele Bennati also wants to serve the team as a sprinter, but coach Paolo Bettini won’t be making any final decisions until September 15th.
Both cyclists are riding the Vuelta a Espana, which is the only Grand Tour of the season for Bennati. The 29-year-old rider has been one of the top sprinters in the Vuelta so far, with a second-place finish in Thursday’s sprint, but the likelihood that Bettini will want a sprinter on the nine-man team is slim.
"I still hope to get a place in the team," said Bennati to Gazzetta dello Sport. "Second place is like a win for me and is a huge boost for my morale. Thor (Hushovd) was better than me but I could have been closer. It was just a pity that as I was going past Gilbert, he moved left a little and I had to stop pedalling for a second."
The Tuscan has been plagued by illness and injury throughout the last two years but feels that he is finally back to form.
"I'm suffering from the changes in pace during the race but that's because I didn’t do the Tour de France and haven't raced much. But my form is growing and my data proves it. I put out 1500 watts in the sprint. That's not bad after such a tough stage."
Bennati survived the climb on Thursday that put Mark Cavendish and Alessandro Ballan ten minutes behind Hushovd, proving that he is more than a pure sprinter. It’s possible the race will come down to a sprint in Geelong, but the circuit demands some versatility.
"I've learned from riding the course in Geelong that it's not typically for sprinters," said Pozzato. "It's a good course for Oscar Freire but not for Mark Cavendish. It might be okay for Thor Hushovd."
The Italian coach will be attending Saturday’s stage of the Vuelta, where Pozzato and Bennati both intend to prove they deserve to get what they want. Pozzato is a favourite for the leadership of the Italian team.
"My form is good," said Pozzato. "I'm getting better and better … Paolo Bettini has said that I'd be the team leader. He has great confidence in me; I'm one of the riders who can do well and I feel like a leader for this race."
Pozzato would like to head to Australia with at least one stage win under his belt, and was understandably disappointed when he failed to take his targeted stage, Thursday’s stage six.
“I tried to pull away on the descent, but it was too far from the finish. In the ensuing sprint, the others were just a little quicker than me and I was a little hemmed in by Grega Bole. Fifth place is not at all what I had hoped for.”
He is still happy with his form and feels ready for the Worlds, as he eyes his biggest rivals.
“Hushovd must be really good in order to chase the rainbow jersey. (Oscar) Freire is not going well, but he will be all right in Melbourne. One who must be considered dangerous is (Nicolas) Roche. Then there’s Sagan, that kid from Liquigas, he scares me. He is strong.”
Italy has won 19 times at the Worlds and will be going into the 2010 championships on a four-year winning streak. Bettini, the current national coach, won in 2006 and 2007, followed by wins for Mario Cipollini and Alessandro Ballan.
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