Domenico Pozzovivo: "Matthew Riccitello reminds me of myself when I was young"

In the winter it was still questionable whether he would find a team, now he is preparing for a new Giro d'Italia: Domenico Pozzovivo. The 40-year-old Italian from Israel-Premier Tech has been stringing together the top ten places for years and says at the press conference that he is aiming for it again.

Pozzovivo wants to score again in the general classification, in which the climber has been successful before. For example, the experienced rider finished eighth last year. "I think it's possible to hook up my cart. The feeling on the bike is good. I also did workouts and made changes to the time trial bike to find the perfect set up. Remco Evenepoel and Primoz Roglic are probably a size too big for the rest, but the level was also high last year when they were absent," Pozzovivo explained for In de Leiderstrui.

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The Italian, stage winner from 2012, also elaborated on his young teammate Matthew Riccitello. The 21-year-old American makes his debut in a grand tour and is seen by many as a possible surprise. Pozzovivo is happy with his teammate. “He reminds me of myself when I was young. We have the same personality traits. For him, it becomes especially important to live from day to day. Matthew is a great climber who can go for a stage win in the high mountains."