24/11/2023

OPINION: Enric Mas must race the Giro d'Italia 2024

Vincenzo Nibali said it recently in an interview with Marca: "For Enric Mas, the Giro d'Italia would be perfect". And the truth is that the Mallorcan and Movistar Team should rethink a change of strategy and opt for a different calendar than in recent years.

This article was written by Juan Larra.

For one reason or another Enric Mas has completed the last two disappointing Tour de France in which he has not been able to shine and has not been able to be with the best. Nor could he be last year every time he competed, neither in the beginning of the campaign in one-week races nor in a Vuelta a España in which he could not get better than sixth place.

Vincenzo Nibali: "For Enric Mas, the Giro d'Italia would be perfect"

So now that it has been confirmed that neither Tadej Pogacar nor Remco Evenepoel will ride the Corsa Rosa, and neither will Jonas Vingegaard or Primoz Roglic, Enric has a great opportunity to try to win his first grand tour;

In the Vuelta a Espana he has been second 3 times. In 2018, very young, he couldn't beat Simon Yates. In 2021 and 2022, already in his prime, he couldn't with Primoz Roglic and Remco Evenepoel. He can't handle the world's top riders. At least he hasn't been able to so far in his career. But he has proven to be one of the best of the second group of favourites and, given that it seems that in a year with the Olympics and a mountainous World Championships, none of the big ones are betting on the Giro, he may be facing his big chance.

Tadej Pogacar puts Giro d'Italia aside for 2024: "The Tour is my main goal every year"

Some of you may wonder why he doesn't bet on the Vuelta. If we talk about rivals, maybe in the Spanish round he will find them bigger, we do not know if Primoz Roglic will want to look for the fourth to match Roberto Heras or Jonas Vingegaard will double again to achieve what he could not get this year.

It is true that there are 68 kilometers on the clock that do not suit him at all, but also that he has very hard mountains and that he will not lose as much time in the ITT as he would with an Evenepoel or a Pogacar on the list of participants;

Enric, it's time to try the Giro.