Cunego ready for the challenge

Defending Giro d'Italia champion Damiano Cunego (Lampre) said that he is looking forward to the challenge in this year's race, especially after his performance in the Tour de Romandie, where he finally found his legs. "The stage win in Romandie freed me from the pressure of getting a result that hadn't happened yet," Cunego told Datasport. "I had good feelings in the Lausanne time trial, obviously my condition is not yet at the top. I believe that my condition can still improve, and the first stages will serve to build it a little."

On this year's route, Cunego commented, "It seems to be to be a difficult route, with a lot of ascents, surely a route for the climbers, therefore I should say that I like it." He named "Basso, the Spanish teams and Liquigas" as his main rivals, while as far as his teammate Simoni is concerned, "All that matters is that a Lampre rider wins."