Richie Porte's seven riders to watch at the Tour Down Under 🇦🇺
The two-time winner and seven-time victor on Willunga Hill picks out seven riders ahead of the first men's WorldTour race of the season
Hi Subscribers,
I’m back in the UK now after a quick visit to Spain for the Visma and Q36.5 media days.
To help break up the content from those two camps, we caught up with Richie Porte ahead of the Santos Tour Down Under.
Having been to the race three times, I’m a huge fan of the event and completely appreciate how much it means to both the riders and the Australian cycling community who have truly embraced the men’s and, more recently, the women’s race.
As a journalist, it’s an amazing race to cover. Sure, the weather is nice, but the race profile always provides memorable moments, the access to the riders is better than you can imagine, and wherever you go, the atmosphere is amazing. It truly is the start of the cycling season.
Sadly, I’m not there this year, but this morning, I was lucky enough to catch up with Richie Porte. The Australian won the race twice and is, of course, the record holder on Willunga Hill. He won seven times there as a pro! Richie picked out his seven riders to watch ahead of the men’s race, and we’ll try and keep on top of the main narratives and storylines from the race over the coming days. It will be tough due to the time zones, but I’m excited to see the season get underway.
Finally, we’ve secured an invite to the Volta ao Algarve next month. I can’t wait to go. It’s one of my favourite races to cover and we’ll be there every day, picking up news and interviews. There’s a good chance I’ll be at one more race in February but I don’t want to jinx it before it’s confirmed.
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Thanks
Daniel 🐨
Luke Plapp (Jayco-AlUla)
Luke is obviously flying right now, and we all saw his recent form at the Australian nationals, where he won the time trial and finished second in the road race to his teammate Luke Durbridge. Plapp had some real standout moments in 2024, too, including a really solid ride at the Giro d’Italia and sixth overall in a tough edition of Paris-Nice. That performance in France impressed me because Paris-Nice is such a demanding race with the terrain and the weather, so to put in a ride like that was a real step up for Luke.
What he did for Luke Durbridge at nationals was also an incredible gesture for the young kid to make. He didn’t have to do that, but Durbo is one of everyone’s favourite riders and such a gentleman. He doesn’t win a huge amount, so for Plapp to make that gesture and for Durbo to be in the national champion’s jersey for the next year was special to see.