Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert Matériaux have had a tremendously successful season so far, and at the Vuelta a Espana they will look to continue their successful run, with a team carrying options for both GC and sprints, with stage wins being a goal aswell between it's many leaders.
"The top 10 in the GC of the Tour and the Giro from Louis Meintjes, Jan Hirt and Domenico Pozzovivo reinforced our initial plans to send a solid group of climbers to this third and last Grand Tour of the season," said team DS Pieter Vanspeybrouck. "In this way, we can increase our tactical choices in order to obtain a top ten in Madrid".
Louis Meintjes has just finished a seventh place at the Tour de France in an unexpected return to form. The mountainous route will suit him, but the team will also count on the presence of Jan Hirt who won a stage and finished sixth at the Giro d'Italia, aswell as veteran Domenico Pozzovivo, all of which will carry GC ambitions as the team looks to thrive once again.
As for the sprints the team will also have high ambitions. Gerben Thijssen comes fresh off a win at the Tour de Pologne, and Intermarché's organized strategy of assigning specific leadout men for their sprinters has payed off, with the Belgian here having the company of Boy van Poppel and Julius Johansen for the bunch sprints. Jan Bakelants and Rein Taaramäe complete the squad, giving it further firepower to hunt stage wins from breakaways.
Intermarché - Wanty - Gobert Matériaux for Vuelta a Espana: Jan Hirt, Jan Bakelants, Julius Johansen, Louis Meintjes, Domenico Pozzovivo, Rein Taaramäe, Gerben Thijssen and Boy van Poppel.