The duo of Mads Pedersen and Giulio Ciccone will use their summer form and run of results to lead the Lidl-Trek team at the Vuelta a España, targeting stage victories, the mountains jersey and a hat trick of Grand Tour points jerseys.
The powerful Dane will be in the action on the flat stages, with the Italian taking over for the many uphill finishes.
Pedersen won four stages at the Giro d'Italia and the points jersey, with Jonathan Milan winning the points jersey at the Tour de France. A favourite for the points jersey in Spain, the Dane has a chance to complete a rare hat trick for Lidl-Trek this year.
Latest Videos From
Pedersen was on fire at the recent Tour of Denmark, winning three stages and the overall, and will target the rolling and flat stages in the Vuelta, especially Saturday's opening stage from Turin to Novara in Italy, which will award the first red leader's jersey of the race.
"My first goal is to win some stages, and then hopefully that puts me in a good place for the points jersey. Having all three Grand Tour points jerseys won by the team in one year would be the cherry on the top," Pedersen said when Lidl-Trek confirmed their final line-up.
"We have a really strong team, quite similar to the Giro, which was close to perfect. Until [Ciccone] crashed at the Giro, we showed that it worked well combining the stage and points jersey ambitions with Cicco in the mountains. Now at the Vuelta I think we can do the same, but I would love to see him reach all the way to Madrid with a top result."
Also in the Lidl-Trek line-up are Amanuel Gherbreigzabhier, Giro time trial winner Daan Hoole, Andrea Bagioli, Søren Kragh Andersen, Julien Bernard and Spanish Giro stage winner Carlos Verona.
Lidl-Trek does not have an overall contender, with Tao Geoghegan Hart returning to racing at this week's Deutschland Tour before a rumoured appearance at the Tour of Britain, and Mattias Skjelmose racing elsewhere.
Ciccone has fully recovered from his Giro crash injuries and won the Donostia San Sebastian Klasikoa and a stage at the Vuelta a Burgos but does not intend to try to challenge Jonas Vingegaard, Juan Ayuso and João Almeida for overall victory in Spain.
"It was not an easy time for me after the crash in the Giro. There was, of course, a lot of disappointment but once I saw through that, and believed again that there was the light at the end of the tunnel, I was motivated to come back racing stronger than before," the Italian explained.
"I want to win stages and the mountains' jersey after winning it at the Tour and the Giro," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport in a recent interview.
"I'd like to target the GC, there's perhaps a chance in Pogačar's absence but it's not something I've ever achieved. Rather than chase something that might never happen, I'd rather go for something that really suits me," he said of his decision to target stages.
"I like winning. Putting your arms in the air is 10,000 times better than going for the GC. If I had to choose between a podium place in Madrid and the polka-dot jersey, there's no doubt which I'd pick…"
Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our 2025 Vuelta a España coverage. Our team of journalists are on the ground from the Italian Gran Partida through to Madrid, bringing you breaking news, analysis, and more, from every stage of the Grand Tour as it happens. Find out more.
