Tejay van Garderen and Rohan Dennis to ride free roles at Vuelta a España 2017
BMC announce Vuelta a España team with Tejay van Garderen, Rohan Dennis and Samuel Sanchez all given free roles
Tejay van Garderen, Rohan Dennis and Samuel Sanchez have all been given free roles in the upcoming Vuelta a España after BMC announced their line up for the year’s last Grand Tour.
In the same vein as their double pronged attack at the Giro d’Italia earlier this year, the American team has opted to keep their options open with the three riders.
Despite an early crash wiping Rohan Dennis from the Giro d’Italia and some tough racing dropping Van Garderen down the overall rankings, BMC managed some notable success with two stage wins in Silvan Dillier on stage six and van Gardern on stage 18.
The American rider hasn’t finished the Vuelta since his debut appearance in 2010 where he finished 35th.
“It’s a tough course with lots of steep uphill finishes that lends many different opportunities for attacks and an explosive style of racing” Van Garderen said.
He also spoke of his ambitions for overall. “I’d like to try and climb as high as possible on the general classification, and hopefully challenge for a stage victory” he said.
After crashing out of the Giro, Rohan Dennis missed the Tour de France but is now back with some “loose” objectives. “I am lining up at the Vuelta a España with a pretty loose general classification objective.
“My goals are going for some stage wins and hopefully I will be able to test myself in the mountain stages against the General Classification guys” he explained.
Spanish stalwart, Samuel Sanchez, will also be aiming for whatever he can get as he returns for his ninth Vuelta, a race he does quite well in recording six top-10s with no fewer than two podium finishes.
“We will have to live day by day as many stages will require superior mental and physical strength,” Sanchez said.
“For me, this is a chance to forget last year’s bad experiences and do a good result this year.”
Whether BMC will form a solid overall challenge remains to be seen but with a wealth of talent, the American team will be up for a fight when it comes to stage hunting.
BMC Racing Vuelta a España line up:
Damiano Caruso
Alessandro De Marchi
Rohan Dennis
Kilian Frankiny
Daniel Oss
Nicolas Roche
Samuel Sanchez
Tejay van Garderen
The Vuelta a España starts on August 19 in Nîmes, France running until September 10 2017 where it will finish in Madrid, Spain.