"It will be the race that will offer the most spectacle" - Nairo Quintana looking to take advantage of Tadej Pogacar's absence at the Giro d'Italia

Taking on a dual-Grand Tour attack in 2025, Nairo Quintana is targeting both the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a Espana. After seeing his hopes of success at the Giro last year consistently denied by Tadej Pogacar, the Slovenian's absence in Italy this year gives the Colombian climber reason to be optimistic.

"I dare say it and with all due respect, it will be the race that will offer the most spectacle of the three Grand Tours because many know that Tadej Pogacar will be in the Tour de France," previews the 2014 Giro d'Italia winner in quotes collected by Marca. "Every day will be a big surprise, attacks, impressive strategies. We have to be alert and hunt in troubled water."

A winner of both the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a Espana in his prime, the now 34-year-old Quintana is perhaps past his best now, but that hasn't dampened the spirit of the diminutive Colombian. "The goal is always to win, that's what we're mentally prepared for. We don't like losing and we'll give our all," he explains, casting a special eye on the Vuelta as the home race for his Movistar Team. "A great responsibility, a great challenge and it will always be about trying to win."

As mentioned, last year at the Giro d'Italia, Quintana showed flashes of his capabilities, coming close to stage victories from breakaway, most notably on stage 15, where he finished 2nd to a rampant, Maglia Rosa wearing Pogacar. Can Quintana go one step further in 2025? Time will tell but clearly the Colombian himself is growing in confidence.