Mikel Landa targets two shots at Grand Tour glory in 2021

Mikel Landa will race the Tour de France and a second Grand Tour in 2021 after being left with unused energies this season.

The Spaniard finished fourth in this year’s Tour but never really looked in contention for the overall win, finishing 5:58 down on winner Tadej Pogačar (UAE-Team Emirates).

Racing once again for Bahrain-McLaren – who will be known as Bahrain-Victorious next season – Landa will target another strong showing at the Tour, hoping to reach its podium for the first time in his career.

He will also race one of the Giro d’Italia or Vuelta a España, both three-week races offering him another opportunity to finish in the top-three of a Grand Tour, something he has only once achieved, at the 2015 Giro d’Italia.

A unnamed member of his entourage told Deia. “The Tour is the big goal of the year, that is clear. “But it’s true that Mikel wants to race another Grand Tour.

“This year, the circumstances did not fit, as we all know, but if you back to a normal calendar he wants to do two Grand Tours.

“We don’t know if it will be the Giro d’Italia or the Vuelta a España that will join the Tour.”

Landa has been dealt a blow in the last week with the news that Rod Ellingworth had left Bahrain-McLaren as team principal to return to Ineos Grenadiers.

Landa was persuaded to join the team after being convinced to work under Ellingworth once again, something he had done at Team Sky.

Nevertheless, the Basque rider remains undeterred by the development and believes that he can compete for top honours in 2021.

>>> Marc Hirschi targets Tokyo 2021 as his main goal

“The most normal thing is that he will go the race in which the route is most suitable for him,” added the unnamed official.

“But he does have the idea of competing in two Grand Tours. It’s something he likes, and his body recovers well between two such efforts. He digests it well.

“Physically, he has spent very little [in 2020], but psychologically it has been a hard year. He was left with the desire for another race.”