'Like chess on wheels' - Mark Cavendish on being neither the fastest nor strongest sprinter after Giro d’Italia Stage 3
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Updated 09/05/2022 at 15:12 GMT
Despite being seen as his team's second best sprinter, Mark Cavendish gave the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl management something to think about ahead of the Tour de France with a blistering performance in Hungary. The win was the 16th stage triumph he has enjoyed at the Giro d'Italia and Cavendish is happy to be back after nine years, saying "I love racing, I love Italy and I love the Giro".
'It's number 16!' - Mark Cavendish wins Stage 3 of the Giro
After taking the 16th stage win of his career at the Giro d’Italia, Mark Cavendish says there are many different ways to win a race and it is not always down to brute strength.
Sprinting ahead of the peloton, the 36-year-old fought off competition from Arnaud Demare (Groupama FDJ) , Fernando Gaviria (UAE Team Emirate) and Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal) to , nine years on from his last appearance at the event.
Cavendish thinks, tactically, he got it spot on in Hungary, saying, “I think there are a few guys who are just as strong and fast, the strongest and fastest doesn’t necessarily mean the best. I’ve never been that but I win. Caleb has the fastest legs, Fabio (Jakobsen) is the strongest, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you win bike races.”
Sprinting is like chess on wheels
Speaking about how he overcame the competition, Cavendish said, “you work out how to be the strongest and fastest on the road.”
He was also full of praise for his Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl teammates, saying, “If you have the guys on that list, it leaves me full of confidence.”
His team includes Michael Morkov on lead-out duty, while James Knox, Mauro Schmid, Pieter Serry, Bert Van Lerberghe, Davide Ballerini and Mauri Vansevenant also feature in the line-up.
“I know it’s on me, I know I’ve got the best group of guys around me, there are no excuses. I haven’t had a full team like this year like Fabio, so it’s nice to get that at the Giro”, he said.
Remarkably, the reason Cavendish is racing at the Giro d’Italia is because his team are not currently planning to take him to the Tour de France, with Jakobsen their preferred sprinter. However, his blistering victory on Stage 3 of the event may just have grabbed the interest of the team’s management.
Cavendish is loving being back at the event, saying “The Giro in Hungary has been incredible. The crowds were phenomenal. I’ve seen many people on bikes, many bike paths. People have loved the Grande Partenza. It’s been a privilege for me to be here and an exceptional privilege to win here.”
“I am happy to be back here. I love racing, I love Italy and I love the Giro”, he added.
The race now leaves Hungary, with more opportunities on the way for Cavendish to add to his Grand Tour stage tally before having to navigate the first summit finish to Mount Etna.
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Stream the Giro d'Italia live and on-demand on discovery+. You can also watch all the action live on eurosport.co.uk.
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