Australian Grand Tour hopeful Richie Porte is due to ride the 2019 Herald Sun Tour for the first time in eight years.
Porte will take part in the stage race down under for the first time since 2011 in Trek-Segafredo kit.
The 34-year-old moves to Trek from BMC, which is undergoing a radical change and becoming CCC Team from next year.
Porte told the Herald Sun: “I’ve wanted to do it for years, but it just never really fit or I was riding for teams that weren’t going to do it, but next year with Trek it just worked.”
>>> Quick-Step Floors’ Zdenek Stybar makes cyclocross return during off-season
The Tasmanian, who left Team Sky in 2015 to chase his own general classification ambitions, is expected to open his season at the Tour Down Under in January, where he has racked up six previous stage wins.
He will then race the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race before taking to the line of the 66th edition of the Herald Sun Tour, which runs from January 30 to February 3.
Porte has been chasing Grand Tour victory in recent years, but has been hindered by back luck.
>>> Tour Down Under 2019 route: Willunga Hill remains the pivotal stage amongst a host of sprints
He finished fifth in the 2016 Tour de France, but has not finished the last two editions of the race, crashing on stage nine of both the 2017 and 2018 editions.
Other big name riders have been firming up their 2019 plan, including Chris Froome (Team Sky), Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data).
Froome is due to open his season with the Tour Colombia in February, while sprinters Cavendish and Sagan will go head-to-head at the Vuelta a San Juan in Argentina in January.
-
-
Ethan Vernon to debut Hope TT bike at World Championship U23 time trial
First international appearance for the roadgoing version of the Great Britain Hope x Lotus track bike
By Simon Smythe •
-
Wout van Aert and Remco Evenepoel looking for extra one per cent at Worlds as task of beating Filippo Ganna looms
The Belgian duo hope for home advantage in order to defeat the Italian in the men's elite individual time trial
By Jonny Long •
-
Elisa Longo Borghini takes a solo success in enthralling GP Plouay 2021
Aggression pays off for the Italian who made her winning move with 12km remaining
By Owen Rogers •
-
'It’s been a nice run, but it’s time': Richie Porte says 2021 edition was his final Tour de France
The Australian leads his national team into the Olympic Games road race on Saturday
By Richard Windsor •
-
Trek-Segafredo win the opening team time trial at Giro Donne 2021 for the second year running
Ruth Winder will wear the maglia rosa in stage two after leading the winning squad across the line
By Owen Rogers •
-
Richie Porte ‘would love to repay Geraint Thomas’ at Tour de France after taking Dauphiné victory
The Tasmanian secured the yellow jersey, a nice bonus, before the real maillot jaune his Ineos team are after at the Tour later this month
By Jonny Long •
-
'I'd love to finish it off,' says Richie Porte after taking Critérium du Dauphiné lead
Richie Porte was the strongest of the GC guys as he attacked on stage seven to take the race lead
By Jonny Long •
-
Ineos Grenadiers announce super-strong team for Critérium du Dauphiné 2021
The Tour de France build-up race is always a big objective for the British squad
By Tim Bonville-Ginn •
-
Giulio Ciccone pulls out of Giro d'Italia 2021
The Italian was sitting sixth in GC before crashing on a descent during stage 17
By Tim Bonville-Ginn •
-
George Bennett explains tactics from finale of Giro d'Italia stage 12
The New Zealand national champion is hunting for stages after falling out of GC contention
By Tim Bonville-Ginn •
