Bauke Mollema will need few days to find his good legs: "I tried to train well this summer and it didn't quite work out"

Bauke Mollema returns to Spanish grand tour for the first time since 2018. The experienced Dutchman used to skip Vuelta in favour of doing Giro-Tour double while focusing on autumn classics including Giro di Lombardia - the race he won himself in 2019. However since Mollema wasn't selected for Tour de France, an adjustment to his routine had to take place.

In an interview with In de Leiderstrui, Mollema comments on how hard it was to miss out on Tour de France for the first time since 2010. "Well, the first days I found it difficult to watch, especially that start in the Basque Country I would have liked to have been there. After that I saw quite a few rides, as an enthusiast and in the hope that the team did well."

"I tried to train well this summer and it didn't quite work out. The last month hasn't been great and the form has been better than it is now... I was a bit sick last week and the training sessions have not been optimal in recent weeks. And then there were some other reasons, so I won't be in great shape for the first few days. Hopefully I can grow into it a bit during the race," Mollema unveils about his preparation for the race.

His role is unclear as far. "We haven't spoken in detail yet, not even about whether Juanpé is going for a classification. We will have that discussion on Friday, but we have Edward Theuns with us for the sprints and he is riding very well and is ready. Juanpé feels good after a lesser Tour and he wants to test how good he is on the third day in Andorra. From there we see what happens."