Local favourite Juan Ayuso has become a late withdrawal from the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, which starts on Wednesday after it emerged the UAE Team Emirates is suffering from a minor case of tendinitis.
Ayuso blazed to fame last autumn with his third place overall in the Vuelta a España, making the 19-year-old the second youngest Grand Tour podium finisher.
Hopes had been high that the talented young Spaniard would impact strongly in the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, the region where he grew up and raced widely as a junior and amateur.
However, a case of tendinitis has put paid to that idea, and Ayuso’s season debut will have to wait a little longer.
“Juan Ayuso was due to start his season here, but he has been suffering a bit from tendonitis, so we preferred not to rush into racing. Juan is in good spirits, and we have no doubt he will be ready to start his season very soon,” sports manager Joxean Fernandez Matxin said in a team statement.
UAE Team Emirates line-up for the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana is a deep one even without Ayuso.
Talented US climber Brandon McNulty, recently fifth in the Serra de Tramuntana race of the Mallorca Challenge, double Vuelta a España stage winner Marc Soler and former King of the Mountains Rafal Majka among the squad’s top names.
“After the fantastic win at the Tour Down Under, we’re very keen to taste our first victory here in Europe,” Matxin observed.
“For Valenciana, we have a very experienced team with an attacking mentality, so we aim to animate the race and go for victories.”
In the absence of Ayuso, Spanish fans will be pinning many of their hopes for Valenciana on Carlos Rodriguez (Ineos Grenadiers), who, like Ayuso, had a breakthrough ride in the Vuelta a España last year.
The Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana kicks off on Wednesday with a hilly stage between Orihuela and Altea.
