An Italian has not won Paris-Roubaix since Andrea Tafi in 1999, but Team Sky's Gianni Moscon is hoping to change that sooner or later. Moscon is arguably an outsider for a place on the final podium in Sunday's race but the 22-year-old from the Trentino region is mature and wise beyond his years and like former Italian winners Francesco Moser, Franco Ballerini and Tafi, he seems to have the natural pedigree that is needed to one day lift the cobblestone prize.
Moscon is one of the best young Italian riders of his generation, having racked up an impressive run of results in important Italian races as an up-and-comer. He was put under close observation by Team Sky in 2015 and then made his professional debut in 2016. He was immediately given a taste of the pavé as a pro. He was in the front group in the finale at Paris-Roubaix last year only for his chances to end when Fabian Cancellara and Peter Sagan crashed in front of him. He got up to finish 38th but was left hungry for another chance.
Teammates and team leaders Luke Rowe and Ian Stannard have struggled to land any significant results this spring due to bad luck and a lack of legs when the races exploded. Moscon has been trying his hardest to fill in for them. He was well-placed when Tom Boonen forced the split on the Muur of Geraardsbergen at the Tour of Flanders and went on to finish 15th in the select chase group that sprinted for fifth place.
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Moscon will support Rowe and Stannard on Sunday but it would not be a surprise to see him at the sharp end of the race on the pavé. He crashed hard at Tirreno-Adriatico when his front wheel exploded during the team time trial but is on form despite a nerve problem in his hip.
"We haven't landed a big result this spring on the cobbles but Kwiatkowski won Milan-San Remo and so there's no pressure to get a result. This is out last chance to show our strength in cobbled Classics but I think we can do something," Moscon told Cyclingnews after the team presentation in Compiegne on Saturday afternoon.
"I was happy with my ride at Flanders even if I didn't have the legs to do better than 15th. Stannard was third last year and we're confident he and Rowe can do a ride again this year. I just hope to have a good race and go as far as possible. I won't have a job to do early on, so my role will be to stay with them for as long as possible and see what happens in the race. If needed, I'll work for them; I've no problem with that. It all depends what happens in the finale."
Loving the pave
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