ELIA VIVIANI

COFIDIS

The good thing about Viviani is that he’s a really good, solid allrounder. He can get through quite difficult races, like the Cadel Evans Race which he won, beating Caleb. But his number one thing is finding a way to win when it looks like it’s just not possible. He’s great at spotting gaps opening and riding through them, then they close up again. I saw him win a stage in the Tour Down Under a couple of years ago and he really threaded the needle – he went through a gap that was tiny and on to the win. He’s a good track rider and he is good at manoeuvring and seeing things like a chess master, a couple of moves ahead and anticipating things. As things are shutting down on the right, he’s accelerating into the right because he knows it’s going to go to the left and as it does he bombs through the gap. He’s good at anticipating what’s going to happen and he’s also a real racer.

But he’s going to find it hard to back last season up. You see this every few years with Cofidis - they do a rebuild and try to get more international and have a crack at the big time, then they seem to sink back. It’s got a very French mentality – there are a number of guys who are there for themselves. They’re not renowned as riding as a team and that’s what Viviani is trying to bring - Italians are good for that, but there may be French guys thinking, ‘I’ll just try to do my own thing.’

So I’m afraid for Viviani it’ll be a tough year to get anywhere near the sort of results he got before. But he gets to ride the Tour, he has a couple of good lead-out men to get him into position, and there’s no reason he can’t win a stage. If he can still do that, Cofidis will say it’s worth every cent.

I’m afraid for it’ll be a tough year to get the results he got before. But he gets to ride the Tour, and there’s no reason he can’t win