"I feel like we’ve had a pretty exceptional year considering our best rider has been sidelined for most of it" - Jonathan Vaugthers looking for EF to keep the good times rolling at La Vuelta

EF Education - EasyPost have had been one of the big success stories of 2023 so far. With the likes of Ben Healy and Neilson Powless standout riders at the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France respectively, team boss Jonathan Vaugthers is keen to continue the roll at the upcoming Vuelta a Espana.

“The team has ridden really well, all year long, but it’s a bit weird because we’ve not had our marque rider at a high level all year,” Vaughters said in an interview with GCN Racing, referencing the continued absence of Richard Carapaz. “That’s tough when it comes to the bigger objectives. So for example, we always wanted to chase the polka-dot jersey at the Tour de France but the first plan was to do that with Richard and it almost worked with Neilson Powless."

With Carapaz's injury continuing to plague him and ruling him out of the Vuelta, Vaughters again has to look elsewhere for his options. "I feel like we’ve had a pretty exceptional year considering our best rider has been sidelined for most of it. To me, that’s a tribute to the rest of the team and organisation,” he says on Carapaz before previewing the upcoming Spanish Grand Tour.

“It’s going to be an exciting young team. We’ve got Georg Steinhauser and Sean Quinn. They’re both young and have shown potential. They’ve done well in smaller calibre races and the Vuelta will be their chance to show themselves at a higher level. I’ve got high hopes for the pair of them. Sean can get over some pretty good hills, so should be a really effective lead-out rider for Marijn van den Berg, who will be a massive focus for us,” he explains.

“We’ll have Hugh Carthy there and the team has a lot of faith in the selection. For Marijn, he can hang on to a small group of riders, and he’s real quick, so he adds a real focus for us," he continues. "He’s had three race wins so far this year but he’s also shown that he can climb really well and he’s a unique rider in that regard. The focus of the team is going to be about chasing stage wins, and primarily through Marijn.”