Our team placed a rider in the top-three here for the second consecutive season.
Mikel Landa became the first Basque rider in the last 15 years to finish on the podium at the Volta a Catalunya, one of the oldest and hardest races in the world. It’s the best outing in six starts here for Mikel, who is just a couple of months into his first season with Soudal Quick-Step, and a remarkable result given the depth of the peloton that was at the start of this 103rd edition.
A rock-solid display throughout the week and podium finishes on all of the race’s summit finishes – Vallter 2000, Port Ainé and Queralt – helped Landa score the seventh top-three finish of his career in a World Tour stage race, which augurs well before his home race, Itzulia Basque Country, scheduled at the beginning of April, where he’ll team up with Remco Evenepoel.
“I am very happy with this performance. I had little idea what to expect coming into the race, but I felt good from the first day and I am delighted that I could show that on the tough climbs and do a good general classification. We tried to fight for the overall and stage wins here, but it was difficult. This didn’t stop us from giving our best and I want to thank my teammates for their strong effort.”
“Second in the standings is my best ever result here, and to do it at the age of 34 gives me a lot of confidence for the Basque Country, which is the best race in the world. I can’t wait to race it with the Wolfpack in just a week from now and I hope to be able to help Remco get a good result there”, said Mikel Landa after delivering Soudal Quick-Step’s third podium in Volta a Catalunya.
Photo credit: ©David Ramos / Getty Images
