Mitchelton-Scott’s gun English cyclist Simon Yates to debut at the 2020 Santos Tour Down Under
Englishman Simon Yates has bolstered Mitchelton-Scott’s 2020 Santos Tour Down Under team - which includes two-time reigning champion Daryl Impey - ahead of the race next month.
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An Englishman bound for Australia to prepare for an Italian job is perhaps odd.
But Mitchelton-Scott announcing superstar Simon Yates will make his debut at the Santos Tour Down Under has sparked the interest of Giro D’Italia fans after he wore the Maglia Rosa (leader’s jersey) for eight days this year.
Despite the Italian tour pedalling off on May 9, Yates’ TDU performance is probably going to be a snapshot of Mitchelton-Scott’s tactics in protecting its prized asset throughout the 3580km and 45,000 metres of climbing during the 21 stages in Italy, after a start in Hungary.
Yates, 27, is expected to be in Australia for more than a month.
He has also been earmarked for the nation’s oldest stage race – the Jayco Herald Sun Tour from February 5 – after competing at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race on February 2.
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“I have always wanted to do the Aussie summer,’’ Yates said.
“I last rode the (Herald) Sun Tour back in 2013 and still to this day it’s the hottest temperatures I have ever raced in.
“Of course, riding for an Australian team there is more pressure, but I really enjoy getting stuck into racing and giving it a good go.
“I would love to hit the ground running, so when any opportunities to take my own chances come, I hope to grab them with both hands.
“After competing in both the Giro and the Tour (de France) last season, I was extremely tired and so we decided as a team to stop earlier than normal to give myself the best possible preparation for 2020.
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“Winter has been going great so far and I have just finished a very important block of training in Gran Canaria, but I will fly out early to Australia to be able to adapt to the conditions.”
Yates, who has been endorsed by consecutive reigning Australian WorldTour champion and fellow Mitchelton-Scott rider Daryl Impey, claimed the 2018 Vuelta a Espana two years after serving a four-month ban by the UCI after testing positive for Terbutaline – a "reliever" inhaler in the management of asthma symptoms – in 2016.
He was banned after his team doctor reportedly failed to apply for a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE).
Since the ban, Yates collected two Tour de France stage wins this year and finished eighth overall at the Giro D’Italia.
And after Impey revealed he had set his sights on another record – a hat-trick of Tour Down Under titles in January – the addition of Yates means the South African has extra support in a bid to make history.
“I look forward to having a guy like Simon in the team,’’ Impey said.
“We have always worked well together and for the both of us it's pretty simple, the best legs will get the support.
“The team comes first.
“We will do whatever we can as a team to try win the ochre jersey.”
Yates’ twin brother Adam Yates is also contracted to Mitchelton-Scott.
Originally published as Mitchelton-Scott’s gun English cyclist Simon Yates to debut at the 2020 Santos Tour Down Under