IPT ready for first Monument of the year

After the most successful start to the season in the history of the team, taking no less than 13 victories so far, Israel – Premier Tech is ready to take on the first Monument race of the year, Milano-Sanremo, on Saturday.

“We’ve got a pretty clear leader in Corbin [Strong],” sports director Steve Bauer explains. “He’s in good shape, he’s climbing well and he showed in Tirreno-Adriatico that he is where he needs to be. When you’re in the hunt for wins on a couple of occasions there, it means you have good legs. I believe he’s ready.”

Strong has indeed had a good start to the season with several top results, most recently with his third place on stage 4 of Tirreno-Adriatico. Last year, the 23-year-old Kiwi made his debut in Milano-Sanremo and this year, he’s eager to come back and fight for a strong result.

“Milano-Sanremo has always been a race that excited me. I enjoyed my first edition in 2023,” he says. “This year, I’m hoping to learn from the mistakes I made last year and fight for a result with a strong IPT team. Tirreno-Adriatico was great preparation with some long days and technical finishes. I feel familiar with the European style of racing and I’m ready for the first Monument of the season.”

To help Strong get a chance to sprint with the best, IPT sends an experienced team to support him and Bauer has the tactic ready.

He adds: “We need to maximize the number of riders we have in front over the Cipressa climb and then bring Corbin to Poggio in a good place. It’s not rocket science really. We just need to put him where he needs to be and we’ve got experienced guys like [Simon] Clarke, [Jakob] Fuglsang, [Hugo] Houle and [Guillaume] Boivin to do that. Then it’s up to Corbin to follow them and fight for a top result in the end.”

IPT at Milano-Sanremo:

Riders: Guillaume Boivin (CAN), Simon Clarke (AUS), Jakob Fuglsang (DEN), Hugo Houle (CAN), Riley Sheehan (USA), Corbin Strong (NZL), Ethan Vernon (GBR)

Sports Directors: Steve Bauer & Rene Mandri