"I've earned a burger and a shot at the title": Larry Warbasse eyes US National Championships after strong Giro d'Italia finish

Larry Warbasse capped off his Giro d'Italia campaign with a final breakaway appearance on stage 20, aiming to carry his hard-earned Grand Tour form into the upcoming US National Road Race Championships in Charleston, West Virginia, on June 21. Warbasse, who previously claimed the stars-and-stripes national champion's jersey in Knoxville back in 2017, is looking forward to targeting the title once again.

Throughout the three-week race, the Tudor Pro Cycling Team rider supported team leader Michael Storer and young talent Mathys Rondel, helping them secure seventh and eleventh places respectively in the final general classification.

Alongside his team duties, Warbasse was granted the freedom to pursue individual stage opportunities. He joined the main breakaway on stage 11 to Verbania (ultimately won by Alberto Bettiol) and went on the attack again during stage 20's mountain route to Piancavallo.

"I felt really strong through this whole Giro. I really tried to measure my efforts and just recover as well as possible each day. I slept as much as I could, and I think it actually really paid off," Warbasse told Cyclingnews.

Maintaining health proved to be a challenge for Warbasse and his teammates, as a wave of minor illnesses affected many riders throughout the race. "My roommate Robin Froidevaux and I were the only two guys on the team who stayed healthy the entire Giro. Everyone else got small colds, but we stayed healthy."

Having ridden the Giro previously and headed straight to the Tour de Suisse, Warbasse’s schedule looks a bit different this summer. He is not part of Tudor's Tour de France roster (in fact, he never rode it), allowing him to entirely focus his training and competitive energy on domestic goals for late June.

"Hopefully the nationals are my next goal, that's next on the list. I'm really looking forward to that. I'm looking forward to going home for a bit, enjoying some time in the US and maybe eating a burger. I think I've earned a burger and a shot at the US national title."

Reflecting on his massive 175 km breakaway effort on stage 20 of the Giro d'Italia, Warbasse said he was surprised as his shape was much better than what he would have expected, which gives him hope to have a realistic shot at the nationals.

"Our Giro goal was to be top 10 and win a stage, and my goal was also to win a stage, so I really still wanted to give it a go. I knew it was a long shot, but I thought, why not? It was good to have a good hit out. I felt really good, which somewhat surprised me. I was one of the stronger guys in the break, but then we were super surprised when all the GC guys showed up behind us."

The Elite Men's National Road Race will take place on Sunday, June 21, on a challenging 198.6 km course starting at Haddad Riverfront Park. The route will see the peloton tackle two climbs on each of the 21.2 km circuits, a terrain that should suit riders coming directly off long mountain stages.