Rui Costa (UAE Team Emirates) is back. The former world champion never really went away, but it’s fair to say that he lost his winning touch since pulling on the rainbow stripes. He won four races in the three seasons that followed Florence in 2013 – with none last year – but he has now almost matched that tally in the space of two months with a blistering start to the 2017 campaign.
The Portuguese rider sealed the overall title at the Abu Dhabi Tour on Sunday, a day after taking the race lead with a fine stage win on the Jebel Hafeet summit finish. It comes after he won the summit finish stage at his first race, the Vuelta a San Juan, and then finished second overall at the Tour of Oman having placed third on Green Mountain.
“In the winter I didn’t change a lot. The only changes was that I was feel better, had fewer problems with the weather, and this helped me to train properly,” said Costa, explaining his form.
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“From the start of the season immediately I felt good and was able to pick up a result, which was very important. I’m really pleased with how things have gone so far.”
Costa can now look ahead with considerable confidence to his next objectives, namely Tirreno-Adriatico in a couple of weeks, followed by a debut at the Giro d’Italia.
“My advantage now is that I’m in great form,” he said of his chances at Tirreno.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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