Between 3-10 September, our squad will look to add to the 20 stage victories we have captured at the previous participations.
The Tour of Britain promises to be again one of the most spectacular and exciting stage races of the season, with the focus this year on the sprinters and rouleurs, who'll have opportunities aplenty to shine. The race will roll out from Edinburgh for the first time in its history, visit Clacton a few days later for a 16km individual time trial and conclude in Cardiff, but not before the peloton will take on a weekend which contains nearly 5000 meters of ascent.
Sprint prodigy Fernando Gaviria will return to the Tour of Britain this September, two-years on from making a winning debut in the race, in Blyth, which will host a stage finish also at this edition. The event, which is set to start on Sunday, will be the Colombian's first stage race in four months, and Gaviria is motivated to leave his mark on it.
"I'm really happy to be back at the Tour of Britain. I had the best experience there two years ago riding as a stagiaire for Quick-Step Floors and immediately winning a stage, so returning to Britain now and being part of this great team is a real honor. I like this race a lot, and for sure I will try to nab a stage victory here", said the Giro d'Italia points classification winner.
Alongside Gaviria will be Dan Martin, who is making his first appearance since finishing in a remarkable sixth place at the Tour de France, in July: "It's always special to ride what is effectively a home race in the Tour of Britain. Always so many fans, a great atmosphere and a testing course. I'm excited to get back to racing following the enforced break I had after the Tour de France. It will be a hard race, but we're coming here with a strong team and I'm motivated to look after opportunities and get a good result."
After racing last weekend's Bretagne Classic, Ronde van Vlaanderen and Amstel Gold Race champion Philippe Gilbert will now head to the United Kingdom for his Tour of Britain debut, where the Quick-Step Floors team will be rounded out by Laurens De Plus, Maximiliano Richeze and Czech Champion Zdenek Stybar.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele
