Mikel Landa is set to make his debut for Movistar Team at the Vuelta a Andalucía, starting on Wednesday. The Basque rider will line up at the 64th edition of the race aiming to perform at a decent level despite his lack of racing.

Landa signed for Movistar after spending the past two seasons at Team Sky. During his time with the British team, he took overall wins at the Giro del Trentino and Vuelta a Burgos. In addition, he also won stages at Trentino, Burgos, Tour of the Basque Country and Giro d’Italia.

“This will be a very special race for me,” said Landa. “New colours, new ambitions and I’d like to start this off in a good way, to make things easier for everyone and bring some joy to the rest of the team. It’s been a rough winter if you consider the cold temperatures we’ve had in the Basque Country. I’ve had to go elsewhere to build a good base for the harder training blocks, and that’s why I’ve moved to Calpe, in the Alicante coast, for most of the offseason. There has been good weather there, so we didn’t have any excuses to fulfil the work plan we were supposed to follow.”

“It will be difficult to go for victory in Andalucía, because there are many contenders who have already built some racing form. Some of them started in Australia, others have been competing in Mallorca and Valencia. However, I’ve done good training, I feel myself in good form, and even if I lack that tiny bit of energy from no racing, I think I can be up there with the best. I don’t know the whole route, but I did watch the Allanadas climb on TV when the race finished there in 2012. The final time trial seems like the key point in this year’s race. We will go day-by-day and see what we can do.”

“After Andalucía, I’ll be racing Tirreno-Adriatico in March and then head to the Vuelta al País Vasco in April, where I’m supposed to be doing really well and chasing success. Then, I’d like to return to the Ardennes classics, which I haven’t raced since 2012. Those are races whose profile and terrain I like, and learning by the side of Alejandro is a great thing. I think I should be in good condition in Tirreno already, but my main goal is reaching my best form in País Vasco and the Ardennes.”

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