How high will Peter Sagan aim this spring? That is a difficult question to address, however this upcoming Milano-Sanremo will be a good gauge for what the former World Champion will be over to do, as the preparation is essentially over and the riders tackle the first monument of the season.
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“It is a difficult race for me to win, but luckily I have one more chance on Saturday. Whether I can win? We'll see," Sagan told Belga. "That depends on the course of the race and my form of the day. Anything can happen, you never know. If I win, I retire immediately. No, that's a joke. Although, let's wait for Saturday. I'm going for it, we'll see."
The Slovakian will be one of the weapons for TotalEnergies, which will also include last year's runner-up Anthony Turgis. In his prime he battled for victory in Sanremo many times, and was never able to win it. He's come close on several occasions, however in recent years not so much. It's also an unexpected race, but taking into consideration the Slovakian is now well and truly an outsider at most, this can benefit him.
“There is always something going on, that is part of the course, those things happen. It is a course that is difficult to control. If you really are the strongest in the Tour of Flanders, you win 'quite easily', but Milan-San Remo is more of a lottery," he says.
On his best day he can climb the Poggio around with the best. His seventh place at the World Championships last year proved he still has a chance of aiming high here. Endurance and plenty experience will come in handy for Sagan who has finished on the Top10 of La Primavera on nine different occasions.
“Everything is decided in the last five kilometers, there is no time to put things right or fix mistakes. In this race it is often all or nothing. I often felt very strong, there were times when I could win, but I didn't. That's life," he admits. "You can have experience, be strong and race smart, but still lose. Milan-San Remo is decided in a fraction and you don't get a second chance to win in that race."
The favourites now are also not the sprinters, as the race gets tougher every year and the teams of those that look to attack open things up from even earlier. Tadej Pogacar and Wout van Aert start as the main favourites for a race that could end in many different ways.
“A small group of three or four riders can escape on top of the Poggio, or one rider can escape from underneath like Vincenzo Nibali," Sagan believes is one of them. "Or look at what Matej Mohoric did in the downhill last year. And if everyone keeps an eye on each other like crazy, then maybe we can sprint with a large group on the Via Roma.”
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