When a rider performs as well as Michael Storer (Tudor Pro Cycling) did at the Tour of the Alps, it would be easy to imagine they were at their peak, and perhaps hitting top form a little early ahead of the Giro d'Italia, but the Australian has brushed off any concerns about peaking too early.
Storer went on big solo moves on three of the five stages – one to win a stage, one to try and defend his leader's jersey, and one last one to reclaim the lead and win the race – and looks to be as strong as we've ever seen him.
For many riders, peaks in form last up to a few weeks for a specific block of racing, but not usually five or six.
However, any suggestion that it might be a problem to be peaking now, with the tough final week of the Giro four weeks ago, was batted away by Storer when he spoke to the press on Friday evening.
"I think for sure that I’m at my peak, but I don’t think that I’ve peaked too early," he said.
"My coach knows me really well, and he’s made a plan going towards the Giro. I don’t think it’ll be a problem, but you never know. I think I’ll be okay."
Storer came into the Tour of the Alps feeling good and confident of repeating something similar to his performance at Paris-Nice earlier this year, but admitted that he did have to work harder for the win, after Thymen Arensman (Ineos Grenadiers) nabbed the race lead on stage 4 with a solo victory, though that also played into his abilities.
"I knew that I was coming here in really good form, but I think that it’s also down to how the race panned out and the nature of the course," he explained. "It ended up being much harder than in previous years, and that opened up bigger time gaps.
"I have to admit that I would have preferred if we could have had a less complicated race, considering that I had to attack every day to be able to achieve this success."
He was also pressed on whether having to work so hard with two long, solo moves in the last two days may have taken more out of him than he'd liked, or require more recovery than planned, but again the Australian wasn't fazed.
"I'll definitely need some recovery after this race. I've been building up really well, so I think I should be okay heading into the Giro," he said.
Even with Tudor's wildcard only confirmed last month, Storer had already been building his season around the Giro d'Italia and an attempt at improving on his 10th place from 2024. Victory in such impressive fashion at the Tour of the Alps will put him on some more radars and tip him for a good rider in May, but the added expectation won't alter his well-laid plans.
"This doesn't change my approach at all, but I’m happy with the compliment that people think that I can do a top five at the Giro," he said. "That would be really cool, but it won't change anything I'll do in the next three weeks or at the Giro."
The only difference is perhaps some added self-belief, though the assured 28-year-old didn't need much to confirm what he already knew about his form.
"It’s definitely a confidence boost," he said. "I knew that I was good coming into this race, but being able to get a result is that little bit extra. It’s not just being good in training, but also being good in racing, that’s definitely good for the confidence.
"I hope to be able to bring this condition to the Giro too," he concluded.
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